Ethics Books

Directing his book to the academic world, Proctor presented the medical and biomedical communities as the propelling forces behind Hitler's holocaust. After explaining the historical origins and context of Nazism, Proctor provided an illuminating examination of the obscure, complex role of Nazi medical science and "applied biology" in the development of Nazi public health policy and the implementation of Nazi atrocities. Proctor disclosed how the medical profession, motivated by politics and a lust for power and prestige, used science to produce knowledge to be used to the detriment and even the destruction of others. Proctor's comprehensive assessment also revealed international influences (normally erased from American history books!) and scientific "evidence" which contributed to the scientific and political views that helped shape Nazi medical culture, and political and racial policies of the Third Reich. Proctor detailed Nazi programs involving racial purification, sterilization, women's rights, euthanasia, and scientific experimentation as examples of how politics shaped the practice of science. Proctor also detailed the resistance to the onslaught of Nazism by the Association of Socialist Physicians, the most organized form of medical opposition and how German medicine might have evolved had history taken a different path. Proctor concluded with an epilogue on postwar legacies and detailed the events that occurred to those involved in the implementation of the Nazi public policies including the transition of prewar "racial hygiene" into postwar "human genetics". ("amedard" aka "djondjon")

I read this book after Peter Sichrovsky's 'Schuldig Geboren' (Born Guilty) about the offspring of noted Nazis. The connection? A whole lot of the latter were descended from Nazi doctors. Many of them were themselves in or studying medicine, and the claim was made repeatedly of the huge following of the whole medical profession for Naziism. And why not?, the Nazi doctrine itself can be rendered by the phrase 'racial hygiene'! Imagine having a whole political movement willing to empower physicians, give them their heart's delight for social prestige and influence (in funded public health measures) and eliminate a huge fraction of their competitors/rivals (Jewish doctors) to boot? But did you know that the inspiration for a lot of Hitler's measures (from anti-alcohol measures to restricted immigration, to sterilization of 'undesirables') came from the USA? Frightening how close our two systems could be.

The book is one of the best-- and not only because it is meticulously researched and written, but because it does not stint at showing that the most respected and supposedly wisest of men can, in their own folly, commit unspeakable crimes. And that science can justify these crimes. It is one of the most powerful arguments against the idea that mankind has progressed that I've read of late.

What were the scientific views of the followers of Nazism and what scientific "evidence" helped them to decide public policy? Author Robert N. Proctor does an excellent job answering these questions.

I admit that I wasn't certain that Samuel Freeman's book on Rawls would be terrific. Two reasons. First, it is very long, and I imagined that a good introductory text would be less than 462 pages long (514 incl. glossary and notes). Second, although I'm a huge admirer of Freeman as a philosopher, all his work that I'd previously read is aimed squarely at scholars; he works on exceedingly difficult questions, makes complicated arguments, and although the pay off is always, in my experience, more than worth the effort, I never expect undergraduates, for example, to be able to make that effort.

But this book is a triumph. A brilliantly careful, utterly transparent, account of Rawls's thought and an admirable presentation of the state of the debates around Rawls's work. Forcing students to read Rawls is the right thing to do; but I shall never again force them to read him without providing Freeman's text as indispensable help.

When I started reading it I was in the midst of a glut of work, and kept trying to put it down so I could get on with things, but couldn't. It is, as it should be at this length, comprehensive--chapters on each of the two principles, on the OP, on the basic structure, and a wonderfully clear chapter on the importance of stability, and what it is that stability consists in. Then a chapter on Kantian constructivism, which really helped illuminate (for me, at least, but I have always been unsure about this) the relationship between the Dewey lectures and the later work, two chapters on political liberalism and one on the Law of Peoples. I guess the book is intended primarily as a companion in a comprehensive course on Rawls's work--read all three main books, and Freeman's so that the students can tell what is going on. But the first six chapters alone justify the (low) price of the book (so it is useable alongside A Theory of Justice or Justice as Fairness alone) and I can't imagine teaching Rawls to undergraduates again without using it. I fyou read Rawls in college, and feel like revisiting him, use Freeman's book alongside it. Highly recommended.

The best introductory work on Rawls and his ideas. The fact that
Freeman knew Rawls and worked closely with him must have helped
in his close reading, explication and critique of his ideas.
Wonderfully and clearly written and most sympathetic to the ideas
of a great thinker. Freeman does a brilliant job in examining all
Rawls's key ideas and works, and places it in the context of
political philosophy as has impacted the 20th century.

Samuel Freeman was editor of Rawls's Collected papers and is thoroughly familiar with his work. What makes this book great and important is that it is extremely well written book on seminal thinker that explains all the important facets of his philosophy. An excellent explanation of Rawls's complex theories of justice and political liberalism that concludes with chapter on The Law of peoples. Rawls's complex ideas are presented with great clarity and grace and although there are 550 pages the text does not get bogged down in unimportant details. This book will be the central reference for serious study of Rawls.

This is a extremely good book. Freeman shows himself a try expert in Rawls's work. If you want to read Rawls's books. I suggest you to read this book along with this. Substaintial parts of the book are adressing Rawls's books Theory Of Justice and Political Liberalism. But also alot of essays, shorer books and the relation between all of this is not forgotten. It really helped me to understand Rawl's theory, thoughts and ideas. Alot and alot better that what I read in Kymlicka's Contemporay Political Philosophy.

Apart from an explenation on Rawls's theory Freeman also is duscussing several of Rawls's critics.

So all in all a invaluable book to those who wish to understand one of the greatest political philosophers of all time.

One remark. The book is not 416 pages as stating here but more close to 575, or atleast mine is.

I've been looking forward to the publication of this book ever since I heard it was in the works two years ago. It was worth every bit of the wait. It's an excellent companion to Walters and Portmess Ethical Vegetarianism, but it's also a fine book by itself. It discusses religious justifications of vegetarianism from a number of religious traditions. I was especially intrigued by the discussions of Xtian and Jewish vegetarianism. I always thought that there was no spiritual support in these two traditions for vegetarianism, but now I see that this is plain wrong. In fact, Both Xtianity and Judaism have a long tradition of compassion for animals. You just have to do a little reading between the lines. If you're looking for a spiritual grounding for your vegetarianism, get this book. It's great!

This book is a breath of fresh air. All we hear about today when it comes to religions is how they breed intolerance and violence. That may be so for the most part, but Religious Vegetarianism shows the other side. All the major world traditions also have a core of peacefulness and love that extends to humans, animals, and the earth itself. This book shows one way that this core works itself out in practical terms--through what the authors call religious vegetarianism. I give it four starts instead of five because it doesn't discuss paganism, which is the most eco-sensitive of all the world's religions. But it's still a very good read.

For those of us who think that killing animals for food is a violation of deep spiritual laws, this book is a Godsend. At this time, when war and destruction seems right around the corner, beginning to practice nonviolence in our daily lives seems like a good idea. This book helps us along the way. It's a very good partner to Portmess and Walter's earlier book, Ethical Vegetarianism.

This book is an eyeopener. For the vegetarian as well as the nonvegetarian. It gives a good account of how different religious faiths around the world and across time have preached a meatless diet. It's pretty well known that buddhists and hindus preach vegetarianism, but I was particularly interested to learn there is a strong tradition of vegetarianism in the Jewish and Christian traditions.

This is for those who wish to take the long lens, and an extremely academic, look at the public discussion of sexuality in 19th century America. Those who are looking for an, um, less academic study need to look elsewhere (titillation it is not). Horowitz demonstrates a thorough analysis of her subject, but presents it without becoming too bogged down in particular statistics. NIce job presenting the spectrum of thought in the 19th century while also connecting the course of history with the 18th and 20th centuries. Although a lot of her story is focused on NYC, the country at large is not forgotten. A book that delivers as advertised.

Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz says that she was puzzled by the stir in 1994 when Joycelyn Elders made a mild comment mentioning that masturbation might be taught about as part of sex education in schools. Our nation is used to hearing daytime talk show chatter about sexual abuse, homosexuality, prostitution, and more, but mentioning this universal and enjoyable practice as something that should be taught about (the religious right twisted her words into "should be taught") was enough to get Elders fired as Surgeon General. Why was there such a hysterical reaction to a mention of masturbation? Horowitz is a historian, a professor of American studies, and the one thing she could do to find an answer is historical research. She has done a mountain of it, looking into obscure court cases, journals, and newspapers, to produce the monumental _Rereading Sex: Battles over Sexual Knowledge and Suppression in Nineteenth Century America_ (Knopf). As the title reveals, Horowitz has not just covered ideas about masturbation (although ridiculous fears of that "evil" seem to have percolated through the minds of every parent and preacher of the time), but has covered the huge topic of what our predecessors thought about many aspects of sex.

The evangelical Christian movement sweeping across the country in the first half of the nineteenth century seized upon such worries about masturbators and lustful women, and "sinful lust became a chief way of comprehending sexual desire." The American Tract Society was particularly vehement on such issues, and was aghast at the scientific understanding of sexual function that was beginning at the time. Especially important was the protection of female virginity, and fear of pregnancy was a vital shield of the nation's maidenheads. Physiological explanations of birth control were seen as a special danger; unimpeded by fear of impregnation, there was no telling what the women would get up to. Tractarians saw the freethinkers who promoted sexual knowledge as blasphemers. Nothing shocked them more than the non-religious (and it was generally the freethinkers who promoted the spread of physiological ideas) insisting that women had similar sexual desires and need for satisfaction as men, or that birth control would promote happiness, health, and economic freedom. It is surprising that the Young Men's Christian Association looms large in these pages. The YMCA had as a goal the promotion of evangelical religion, and during the Civil War, it was worried about Union soldiers, displaced from home, and in 1865 the YMCA was able to advocate for a post office bill that would forbid mailing erotic prints and books, the first time the federal government tried to regulate moral content of mailed material. The anti-sex activities of the YMCA were linked to the famous and foolish reformer, Anthony Comstock, whose censorious aims even kept birth control information out of medical texts.

Horowitz has summarized four "frameworks" out of the confusing discourse about sex during the period. The Vernacular Tradition consists of sexual information (and misinformation) passed generally by word of mouth. Evangelical Christianity hated lust and equated most sexual activities with sin. Reform Physiology looked to the science of the body (often composed of wildly inaccurate assertions) to promote sexual freedom, and sometimes sexual restraint. And then there were Utopians, who thought sex was the central part of human existence and should be untouched by the government. These four voices, in the printed works and journals of the time, often overlapped and swamped each other with rhetoric. The huge number of philosophies and personalities which played a role in the debate, and made a foundation for our current sexual ideas, are brilliantly distilled into this large, well-referenced book, which is an entertaining academic tome without ever being fusty or tedious.

This book is an educational, informative study of America's attitudes towards sex during the 19th century. The author's thorough research and interesting approach (taken from four very different perspectives, depending upon gender, profession, and philosophy/religion) offer a unique explanation and understanding of how Americans viewed sex during the 19th century. I was surprised by how much information (though much of it is incorrect, such as the "fact" that women who are raped cannot become pregnant because they do not feel passion during the rape) there was available to 19th century Americans about this taboo topic. Some of it was not a surprise (the whole male sporting culture, which was adopted as a Victorian moral code for men and women in which men are permitted and encouraged to have as many sexual relationships as possible whether they are married or single and in which women are to be kept ignorant of their husbands' (and fathers', brothers', etc.) relationships or, if they are aware of them, they are to turn a blind eye, yet absolute fidelity on the part of the females is required. It sets up an illogical double standard--who are these men having sex with if women are to remain virgins until marriage and faithful after marriage?) Other parts were a surprise--the concept of "free love" appeared much earlier than I thought and censorship appeared much later than I thought. The reasons for turning to the courts and for using censorship were also explained, with thorough detail about how mores changed as the century progressed, and the full impact of the Industrial Revolution made its mark on every aspect of Americans' lives. Horowitz shows how, with the Industrial Revolution, work changed, and young people left home to work in larger cities. Without parental/familial or community (religious) control or guidance, young men experimented with sex and young women were also now subject to sexual pressures and temptations. Horowitz also makes an interesting connection between the censors' fears of sexual information, particularly about birth control and abortion, and the dangers of having and using this information. Also discussed in great detail is why this particular group feared, above all, giving women (both married and single) any information which would help them limit the size of their families, despite very compelling arguments from opponents about the hardships faced by parents who could not afford to feed a large family yet lacked the information to limit family size and arguments about how important it was for the health of the mother (and her family) that she should not have 12 children in 12 years. Horowitz states firmly that it was the fear that these women, if they knew of ways to prevent pregnancy or that they could have an abortion, would all cheat on their husbands! Fear of pregnancy, they reasoned was the only thing that prevented female infidelity! In this area, I think that Horowitz did not go far enough. Undoubtedly this was the concern stated by the pro-censorship faction, but underlying this was the larger issue of inheritance. At this time in American history, only males inherited property from their fathers (married women were legally not permitted to own property--everything they brought to the marriage, i.e., the dowry, became their husbands' property once they were married) and only legitimate children (i.e., children born of the marriage) could inherit. Illegitimate children had no rights whatsoever (inheritance-wise). It was a very frightening thought to men that their wives could be unfaithful to them, could become pregnant, he could end up raising an illegimate child! This is also what was driving the double standard--men could be permitted to have as many extra-marital affairs with prostitutes, mistresses, etc. because their behavior did not affect the inheritance laws. If a man had 50 mistresses and 500 children outside of his marriage, none of those 500 children could claim any rights to parental obligations/duties or to inheritance. The only ones who could inherit were a husband's male issue born of the marriage. The extra-marital behavior of the wife, however, was another matter entirely. No man wanted to see his property go to an illegitimate child, so this added an additional "control" on female behavior, just in case fear of pregnancy was not enough.
This book is very well researched and well-written. Academics and non-academics alike will find it easy to read, theories are set out and backed up with research and facts, and many of the stranger mores associated with the 19th century explained. It makes an interesting study for anyone who has ever wondered how and why Americans came to be so schizophrenic (using sexual images to sell everything from cars and copy machine toner to chocolate, yet there was a huge fuss a few years ago about a billboard that showed a woman nursing a baby) about sex during the 20th century because it shows that Americans were equally conflicted about sex during the 19th century, and had not resolved those issues. Highly recommended.

This marvelous books contains lots of surprises: that legal censorship of written material about sex came later in the 19th century than I had suspected; that "scientific " reformers who believed that disseminating informaton about sex appeared on the scene earlier; and that the perception that masterbation was a threat to American society came not from religious fundamentalists but from the scientific theories of some of these same reformers. Elegantly written, and brilliantly researched, this book is a must for anyone wanting to understand the strange cross-cutting attitudes about sex in contemporary America.

A necessary companion to 'Eichmann in Jerusalem.' I concur to an extent with the reviewer below regarding Jerome Kohn's introduction. One should definitely start with the first chapter, "Personal Responsibility Under Dictatorship," before reading Kohn's piece, as it clarifies some of the confusing aspects of Kohn's argument.

Responsibility And Judgment is a collection of previously unpublished writings from the last decade of the life of editor and World War II survivor Hannah Arendt (1906-1975). Chapters wrestle with complex moral issues and philosophical questions both in general and in relation to specific events such as judicial trials of World War II criminals and the repercussions that America's failed war effort in Vietnam had on the nation's policies and psyche. Written in clear, no-nonsense terms, Responsibility And Judgment is as accessible to lay readers as it is to philosophers, and offers its insights free from the constraints of political ideology. Highly recommended.

Hannah Arendt has always been one of my favourite writers. This volume collecting her works does not disappoint.

However, do not expect the same incisive and indepth look into the pressing ethical issues here. This is not the fault of Hannah Arendt. This is afterall a collection of bits and pieces of her works, put together not necessarily in a coherent way.

Nonetheless, this book is worth a read, particularly as it condenses and crystalises some of the thoughts contained in her other, longer, and more difficult to read books. Next to her "Men in Dark Times", I would recommend this book as a good place for those unfamiliar with Hannah Arendt to begin.

However, do ignore the introduction by Jerome Kohn, which is rather a rather incoherent, bitter, and ranting little piece of work, attributing to Hannah Arendt thoughts and opinions that might or might not have been hers. It is better for the reader to judge for himself or herself as to what Hannah Arendt meant to say, and not left a lesser mind to colour the reader's perceptions.

Given that none of the editorial reviews on this page contain a table of contents, I decided it may be wise to copy it here:

Introduction by Jerome Kohn
A Note on the Text
Prologue
I. RESPONSIBILITY
Personal Responsibility Under Dictatorship
Some Questions of Moral Philosophy
Collective Responsibility
Thinking and Moral Considerations
II. JUDGMENT
Reflections on Little Rock
The Deputy: Guilt by Silence?
Auschwitz on Trial
Home to Roost

The first part deals with somewhat abstract questions, whereas the second is an application of Hannah Arendt's moral and more generally philosophical considerations to real-world situations. The fundamental text contained in this volume is "Some Questions of Moral Philosophy", which is based on four lectures Arendt gave in 1965. In it, Arendt deals with Socrates, Immanuel Kant, Paul of Tarsus, Augustine of Hippo, and Friedrich Nietzsche while discussing thinking, willing and judging. Also of note is Arendt's examination of Dr. Franz Lucas's case (described in "Auschwitz on Trial"). In a nutshell, this is a very interesting, though somewhat mixed and slightly repetitive, collection of essays, speeches, and lectures by a significant Selbstdenker.

Alexandros Gezerlis

We hadread the first book of Ms. Cunningham's new trilogy, The "Daugther of the Isles" and read it aloud & loved it!! So, wewent & found this earlier work ..which is also about spirituality & nature & the Goddess & is peopled by amazing characters. We can not reccomend it enough!!!

THE RETURN OF THE GODDESS is my all-time favorite book. Author Robert Kelly called it a "celebration of how four remarkable people grow into godhood, the journal all love tries to make". I grew to love these four unforgetable characters. The story is also called "a divine comedy", and I laughed my way through it. I celebrated Esther's journey to self discovery and personal growth--and related to it--and most women can. THE RETURN OF THE GODDESS begins on Halloween night, and so I re-read it every October. The imagery--sights, sounds, smells--bring this book to life. Every time I read it, I envision this story made into a movie--it would be wonderful! Thank-you, Elizabeth Cunningham, for bringing these characters and this town to life.

I love this book. I've read it so much that the pages are almost all dog eared. I've given copies of it to 6 of my friends and have loaned mine to at least five others. Elizabeth Cunningham is a fantastic storyteller and she leads us on a journey through a woman's spirit, awakening to the power of her self. It is a hard journey, but a worthwhile one, and you'll laugh all the way through until you cry at the end. Beautiful, poetic writing and outrageously funny realism combine to make this a "can't put it down 'til I'm done" kind of book. The Goddess dances across the pages and into your heart as you read it, and the book leaves you with a sense of hope and a feeling that somehow, someway, justice will always be done. Thanks, Elizabeth Cunningham, for the book that always picks me up when I'm in a low place.

A wonderful novel for both people who want an introduction to the Goddess as well as those who already are faithful believers. I agree with the other reviewers who say this book is meant to be reread and reread. As a true believer, I would send this to my circle friends,but I would also feel comfortable and sharing it with friends who don't know about female centered religions.

This book is an exercise in "redfining kindness", and Roddick goes the distance. What a beautiful, nuanced, and mindful effort this is. Anita Roddick revives (and reinscribes) this profoundly simple word "kindness", a word we like to scoff at in our everyday, hard-hitting lives but fail to really take a moment to grasp its dimensions. In "A Revolution of Kindness", you will find contemplations by people who have taken this moment to pause on kindness. All I can say is that this is the most eclectic anthology of words I have encountered in recent memory - quotes from CEO's, literary celebrities, activists, scientists, soldiers, journalists, singers, feminists, philosophers, religious leaders, vagabonds - a smorgasboard of inspiration, wisdom from all directions, even the most unexpected ones. Buy this book, read this book, SHARE this book! It is very accessible and simply a darn good read - a collection of short expositions, excerpts, aphorisms, candid quotes, and tiny manifestos that are enhanced by terribly intelligent, edgy graphics (lots of pulp-y pastiche and pop references.. Roddick has all angles covered!). It's about time that we reintroduce kindness into our lives, and give it the care that it deserves. This book is consumer-cute and sort of has that on-the-go punchy feel, but it manages to be so substantial at the same time. It will fill up your heart.

A well presented, thoughtful and inspiring collection of essays. I thouroughly enjoyed reading it. It's good to be reminded of humanity in these grave times. Buy one for your library and as gifts for friends.

I have to say I have really enjoyed this book. A friend gave it to me and it really makes you think about the world around you. It is a pleasant read and quite interesting. I highly recommend it!

...would it change the world? This is a compelling collection of stories and thoughts about kindess; what it means and how if people were encouraged to put kindness first it might change the world. The stories in the book come from people from all walks of life, speaking with empowering and refreshing voices and honestly reflecting on kindness.

This is one of those books that with even just a quick dip into it it can not only make you think about the important questions in life but also inspire you to have hope.

Very helpful discussion of basics and some advanced issues regarding compliance for RIA's.

I can't imagine any RIA firm, particularly those with CFP designees on staff that wouldn't be interested in this book. It is both well written and well organized. I intend to keep this book as a permanent resource. Opportunity to earn 20 hours CFP CE credit gives it great value as well.

I was quite "blown away" by the amount of accurate information in this book. In all of my years in this industry I have never seen it contained in one place so comprehensively. It is also quite easy to read and to find what you're looking for. I recommend this book as a guidepost to everyone in the investment advisory business.

Any area involving government regulations is destined to be very complex and very confusing. This is particularly true with securities and the SEC and state regulatory requirements. Ms. Demby's book provides a guide through the regulatory maze.
I am just beginning my journey into the financial planning profession, and this book will always be within easy reach.


James Dupree, CPA

Library Journal, April 15, 2003
Well written and lucid ... brings objectivity, honesty, and wisdom to business ethics ... encourages ... honest questioning [on] integrity in the workplace.

Harvard Business School Working Knowledge, April 21, 2003
The ... topic of corporate governance is further deepened in this ... collection of columns ... first published in The New York Times.

Inc. magazine online, May 19, 2003
Any owner could broaden...thinking...by spending a couple...hours with Seglin's book...[and]from circulating this book among employees....

Ethikos and Corporate Conduct Quarterly, May/June 2003
"...no preaching... The wide range of ethical problems..considered here...are discussed in a calm and rational way..."

Book Description
This engaging and provactive new book brings the issues of corporate and personal responsiblity in a profit-driven world down to the kind of everyday decisions we all have to make.

From the Inside Flap
Praise for The Right Thing:
"With trademark clarity Seglin showcases some of the prickliest real-life dilemmas. . .These stories reach out and grab you. They make you ask what you would have done in the same situation. You'll be surprised at the answers."
Nancy K. Austin, Co-author, A Passion for Excellence

"Jeff Seglin's "intellectual honesty and non-preachy style makes you think hard about the right thing, and what it means for your own behavior. He is a great teacher whose course you never want to end, and whose work is a great gift."
Jim Collins, co-author of Built to Last and author of Good to Great.

"Jeff Seglin writes with passion, clarity and wisdom about the toughest issues facing the business community. We all `profit' from this important and readable book."
Ronald Thiemann, Harvard University

"An extraordinary compendium of real-life moral dilemmas which lead to productive moral discussion. He leads readers through actual business problems and sets readers thinking and groups talking . . .a thoughtful and thought provoking work."
Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky, author of The Genesis of Ethics

"Seglin's mini-essays are gems of practical wisdom."
Joseph Badaracco, Professor of Business Ethics, Harvard Business School, author of Defining Moments and Leading Quietly

The Right Thing is just that: the right thing for today's business managers who want to take ethics seriously from a moral and practical standpoint. Written. . . with thoughtfulness and an informed opinion.
Laura Nash, Senior Research Fellow, Harvard University

"Seglin sees both the ethical dilemmas as well as their proposed solutions in a clear and objective light, offering unparalleled honesty to the discussion of business ethics. . .Essential reading for all managers involved in evaluating the effectiveness of their company's solutions to today's problems of integrity in the workplace."
David Gebler, President
The Working Values Group, Ltd.

About the Author
Jeffrey L. Seglin is a syndicated columnist on ethics for the New York Times and previously wrote for Fortune Magazine. He is a frequent commentator on NPR's Marketplace and the author of The Good, the Bad and Your Business: Choosing Right When Ethical Dilemmas Pull You Apart. He was a Resident Fellow at Harvard University, an Ethics Fellow at the Poynter Institute, and is an assistant professor and director of the graduate program in pbblishing and writing at Emerson College in Boston. He holds a master's degree in theology and literature from the Divinity School at Harvard University. He lives in Boston with his wife, Nancy.

The columns featured in this book began during an era of unusual optimism and boom in the economy. By almost any measure (low unemployment, high stock market valuations, capital investment in dotcoms) times were good and therefore a secondary concern like ethics was easily dismissed. During the four years of the column these conditions changed radically with the economic recession and the explosion of corporate scandals. It became obvious that ethics could not be ignored, regardless of the economic metrics. While it would be an exaggeration to say that ethical lapses caused the recession, Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, and other corporate disasters proved that ethics matter.

Business managers must always make ethical considerations an important element in their decisions, recognizing that any action that benefits one group could harm another. In hiring, technical qualifications should not outweigh an assessment of the candidate's ethical makeup. Will this person fit with the espoused principles of the corporation? That is a question to be thoroughly considered. Of course, this is not easy, but precisely because ethics is so difficult to integrate into corporate thinking, the effort should be continuous and sincere.

Jeff Seglin, with his university degrees in Theological Studies and English, has been a popular writer in a number of business publications for years. His followers enjoy a style of writing that is comfortable, easy to relate to, and complete with concepts to engage the mind. Five years ago, while a Resident Fellow at the Center for the Study of Values in Public Life at Harvard University, he began writing a monthly column on ethics for the New York Times. This opportunity was a natural for Seglin, whose writing and objective observations benefit from a foundation of deep thinking about vital business issues.

This book is a collection of 46 of the columns Seglin wrote in the Times. Rather than a chronological sequence, the presentation is organized into six parts: Ethics Policies and Life in the Corporation; Hiring; Bosses; Privacy: Lying, Cheating, and Stealing; and Leading by Example. The columns are presented like a series of essays, one "chapter" following another without starting on a new page. This design gives the reader a sense of flow, that all these issues addressed by Seglin are tied together.

Readers will read thought-provoking pieces on a wide variety of topics, each of which could stimulate worthwhile conversations among corporate executives. The purpose of the essays is to raise ethical questions that people in business were likely to face. Discussion of the issues presented-by corporate executives, managers, and virtually every member of an organization-can build a productive openness and a process for dealing with situations that arise. The exploration of these issues, dilemmas, and implications will be valuable for university students about to enter the business world... especially those who desire to move into leadership positions where they may confront ethical considerations on a fairly regular basis-to resolve, advise, or mediate.

There are no black-or-white answers in this book. Seglin is careful to point out that "The discussion of ethics in business is one that at its best should be ongoing and always challenging assumptions." This book will be a useful tool to foster those health discussions.

The Right Thing is a compendium of columns from "The Right Thing" column that has appeared monthly in the Money and Business section of the Sunday New York Times since 1998. In most cases, these brief essays take a contemporary news item and pull it apart from different perspectives to lay out the ethical dilemmas and possible solutions. In each case, Professor Seglin makes it clear that doing the right thing is what ethics is all about. He frequently draws on the research of many others who have studied ethics to help flesh out the issue.

The essays are grouped into six sections:

Ethics Policies and Life in the Corporation
Hiring
Bosses
Privacy
Lying, Cheating and Stealing
Leading by Example

These essays are unafraid to point out public inconsistencies with ethical behavior. For instance, Professor Seglin takes Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, to task for encouraging ethical behavior by others but not doing enough to be a good example himself. Harvard University is criticized by cashiering the dean of the Divinity School after sexual material was found on his PC. The dean's behavior was embarrassing to Harvard, but the behavior was not unethical in Professor Seglin's view.

I found my mind stretched by many situations I had not thought enough about. When a co-worker donated a kidney to her boss, how was the boss supposed to treat her after that? How did that treatment affect the ethical situation towards her other co-workers by that boss?

There's a nice section on whether the struggling start-up should "borrow" from IRS payroll taxes to keep afloat in hopes of a better day ahead. (Don't do it!)

I don't work in a large company, so the issues about privacy relating to e-mails were interestingly new to me. The conclusions seemed to me to be full of good sense. When you find inappropriate behavior, deal with it. Don't go trolling for it, however, as a part-time, catch-as-catch-can activity.

It's a commentary on our overly "free market" orientation towards business that you don't find many discussions of business ethics as applied to current situations except when executives are being carted off for a criminal arraignment. I hope that the New York Times and other news media take a hint from the content of these columns and expand the subject of ethics to include as many of their business news stories as possible. The events of the last few years seem to suggest that people are not observing the Golden Rule when it comes to their business activities.

I also recommend Dr. John Maxwell's new book, There's No Such Thing As Business Ethics.

Where else should more attention be paid to ethics? That's a good subject for dinner tonight with your family.

Raphael Cohen-Almagor offers a comprehensive, rich, and critically considered discussion about questions of death and the choice of death in the context of the medical practice.

This book is a remarkable contribution to the debate on death with dignity. It discussed a wide range of topics, including an original outlook on terminology at the end of life (for example, 'post-coma unawareness' is suggested instead of 'permanent vegetative state'); the question of autonomy; the sanctity-of life - quality of life debate; criticism of some extreme quality-of-life position; criticism of Ronald Dworkin's distinction between critical and experiential interests; active and passive euthanasia; the Dutch experience, and the Oregon Death with Dignity Act.

Cohen-Almagor's book is a complete, interdisciplinary discussion of the right to die with dignity. It may be of great interest to people coming from different experiences. Its language and methodology make it accessible to wide range of readers. Its exceptional merit is that it provides a balanced view that never renounces human life and human dignity.

The Right to Die with Dignity offers a valid and up-to-date discussion on euthanasia. It contains three levels of analysis: ethical, medical and legal. On each Raphael Cohen-Almagor shows incredible thoroughness and exhaustiveness. In the book you find statistic data, court cases, examples and arguments for and against mercy killings. The book has many virtues: the argumentation is rational, clear, simple and above all with a remarkable human approach. It is also an easy read, for those who meet the questions of morality and legislation of euthanasia for the first time, but also for those who have some experience in this subject.

A nuanced discussion of some of the most difficult issues in health, law, and bioethics today written in a lively prose and with a clear sense of moral passion. The international perspective is particularly useful and, undoubtedly, Cohen-Almagor's arguments and conclusions will provoke discussion

Cohen-Almagor uses insightful examples and applies his penetrating intellect to shed light upon some of the most difficult choices that arise at the end of life