PLEASE CITE REFERENCES USED FOR RESPONSES: Also, please name each discussion response on attachment so I know which response is which
DISCUSSION POST #1:
I definitely agree that power tends to corrupt people if they allow the power to go to their head. Unfortunately when some people get in powerful positions they tend to engage in not so ethical powerful behavior such as: expecting others to do as they say without asking questions, believing the are above the law therefore they can break it, and showing lack of interest in the welfare of others amongst many other things. An example when power corrupts would be the leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-Un. He has zero disregard for the welfare of his people. Millions of his people are starving due to the lack of food, and he still has prison camps where people are starved and even beaten to death. The people in Korea fear him because he has the power to have them killed or thrown in prison camps.
I do not think it’s ethical for bad leaders to try to increase their power especially if their values and rules do not coincide with what is ethically right versus what is ethically wrong.
Reference:
http://changingminds.org/explanations/power/power_corrupts.htm
DISCUSSION POST #2:
Hello All,
I do that believe that power corrupts, and in that same sentence, I believe the level of corruption can also vary depending on the person. I think power can and will go to anyone’s head to some degree. We all like being in charge, being the leader, taking the responsibility for certain outcomes.
These days it can be seen from as big as politicians to as small as the office veteran taking liberties at work. For example, there is a person at my work place that is considered our “leader” when the real management steps out of office. This person acquired this leadership position simply by being the longest working employee with the organization. The person feels he can take the liberty’s to take extended lunches, to make decisions for the organization such as remodeling decisions, he feels he can tell the other workers what they need to do in and with their jobs in the organization.
This type of corrupt leadership makes it harder for other employees, because we can’t look up to him as a good role model. It makes work harder on us because at times he feels his “leadership” position exempts him from the regular work that we ALL usually do.
Corrupt persons in leadership positions make it harder for the followers to want to do the right thing. In a sense, they see leadership do it and think either, that’s the way it’s always been, or even worse, “Gee, I hope I can be like that guy one day”.
Thanks,
Jacinda
DISCUSSION POST #3:
I agree that they should look at making sure Social Security is available to the next generation. We all work and if we look at our check stubs, they take Social Security from us. If they can take money out of my check each month, this should be something that I have access to in the future. Yes many companies offer 401K plans, but I have seen where some businesses because of faulty planning and business failures, folks working for those companies for years, can lose those benefits. So what does a person have to fall on? What happens if I work all my life putting money in a retirement plan, and because on nothing I have done, I loose all those saving? Social Security should be available to me, as I know the amount of money put in it each I have worked clearly should be some help with living after working age.
DISCUSSION POST #4:
I agree with this statement because congress should consider privatizing social security contributions which would help strengthen the link between work-effort and returns and would constitute a way to reduce such shortcomings. Privatization could also allow liberation of rigid age-eligibility rules-permitting workers greater flexibility to retire early if they have accumulated sufficient resources in their personal retirements accounts. Finally, privatization would provide a way of ensuring that resources intended for meeting future benefit obligations are saved and invested rather than being spent on non-Social Security government programs.
Gokhale, Jagadeesh (2009). Social Security Reform. Retrieved 03/09/2016 from: Harvard Journal on Legislation
