3 ms·

I think society may have benefited from Gates, Jobs, and Zuckerberg completing their ethics requirement.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
lotsofpulp 5y ago
I would bet everyone has a price for their ethics, no matter the course they took. It is a risk reward calculation, and the bigger factor is probably how one’s tribe reacts to their risk reward calculation. If your tribe celebrates it for sufficient gain as long as there is no direct physical violence, as I think the environment in many families/socioeconomic circles of the US does, then ethics courses are just a cover your ass solution.
- hattmall 5y ago
  Ethics class can literally teach you how to be ethical though. Like it's not that people want to be unethical, they simply don't know how to accomplish their goals in an ethical fashion. Most people legitimately want to think of themselves as good people, instructing them on making sure that the rest of society views them this way can be very valuable.
throwaway98797 5y ago
ethics is rarely a matter of knowledge. Can character be taught?
mrosett 5y ago
The research shows that ethics courses have no effect and may even make people less ethical
Clubber 5y ago
Ethics comes from parents and family, at least mine did. I took an ethics class in college and the only thing I remember was a trite discussion about wether taking a work pen/pencil home to do work at home was stealing. If you are being introduced to ethics in college, it's too late.
fallingknife 5y ago
Unpopular opinion time. To succeed in any high leadership position that requires exercise of power, a somewhat sociopathic attitude is required. This is actually a necessary component of a modern society, as the traditional emotionally driven rules of human organization scale very poorly above groups of a few hundred people.
paulpauper 5y ago
If it were only limited to that. Why does being well-rounded require years of other stuff?
bawolff 5y ago
Gates did some sketchy things as a businessman, but now he is basically eliminating malaria. On the balance i think he has positive utility to the world.
BeFlatXIII 5y ago
Do you believe that the gen ed requirements really do create a lasting impression on the average student?

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

I would bet everyone has a price for their ethics, no matter the course they took. It is a risk reward calculation, and the bigger factor is probably how one’s tribe reacts to their risk reward calculation. If your tribe celebrates it for sufficient gain as long as there is no direct physical violence, as I think the environment in many families/socioeconomic circles of the US does, then ethics courses are just a cover your ass solution.

hattmall 5y ago
Ethics class can literally teach you how to be ethical though. Like it's not that people want to be unethical, they simply don't know how to accomplish their goals in an ethical fashion. Most people legitimately want to think of themselves as good people, instructing them on making sure that the rest of society views them this way can be very valuable.

throwaway98797 5y ago

ethics is rarely a matter of knowledge. Can character be taught?

mrosett 5y ago

The research shows that ethics courses have no effect and may even make people less ethical

Clubber 5y ago

Ethics comes from parents and family, at least mine did. I took an ethics class in college and the only thing I remember was a trite discussion about wether taking a work pen/pencil home to do work at home was stealing. If you are being introduced to ethics in college, it's too late.

fallingknife 5y ago

Unpopular opinion time. To succeed in any high leadership position that requires exercise of power, a somewhat sociopathic attitude is required. This is actually a necessary component of a modern society, as the traditional emotionally driven rules of human organization scale very poorly above groups of a few hundred people.

paulpauper 5y ago

If it were only limited to that. Why does being well-rounded require years of other stuff?

bawolff 5y ago

Gates did some sketchy things as a businessman, but now he is basically eliminating malaria. On the balance i think he has positive utility to the world.

BeFlatXIII 5y ago

Do you believe that the gen ed requirements really do create a lasting impression on the average student?