Abstract Defines key terms and legal status of PAS. Presents arguments for and against PAS, including a patient's right to self-determination.
From the Paper "The purpose of this paper is to explore the legal, medical, and ethical issues surrounding physician-assisted suicide (PAS). Based on a comprehensive exploration of all of these ..."
Abstract The leadership theories discussed in Peter G. Northouse's " Leadership: Theory and Practice" and Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal's "Reframing Organizations" are applied to the paper's author's own profession as a partner in an accounting firm. The first part of the paper discusses various leadership styles. In this section, the author notes how the classical leadership style necessarily limits the ways in which a leader can both lead and manage in the modern era and suggests that her accounting firm would benefit best from a leader who embodies the consideration style of leadership. The second section includes the results of a self-inventory process concerning the author's leadership style, and the last section of the paper discusses the effectiveness and other advantages of this style of leadership.
From the Paper "In the wake of the corporate scandals of Enron and the Arthur Anderson Company, there have been increased calls for strong ethical leadership. Leadership has always been regarded as a key factor in ensuring the effectiveness of any organization. However, new models are also being developed to challenge the limitations of the prevailing classical theories of leadership."
Abstract This paper discusses how, as one of the most controversial Internet-based technologies, file sharing is causing a wave of ethical and legal conundrums. It looks at how Napster drew the most mainstream media attention due to several lawsuits filed against them by individual recording artists and how music files aren?t the only copyrighted materials being shared by Internet users. It explores how software, movies, and photos are freely traded through peer-to-peer (P2P) networks and how dozens of file sharing applications like Morpheus have gained popularity, posing legal and ethical problems as most of the files being traded are copyrighted material.
From the Paper "Napster began the file-sharing revolution and was one of the first pieces of software that created an organized network of users. Using a central server to store a massive amount of music files would not only be costly and cumbersome but also totally illegal, so the architects of Napster designed their software so that each person would download directly from other users? hard drives. This system basically made each individual PC running Napster into a server. A list of sharable files is compiled by the software client, and Napster's central servers compile the file lists of all its online users. This way, individual users can browse others? files in a secure manner. Using the software interface, users can then perform searches for specific song titles, and the songs are downloaded directly from one peer to another."
Abstract This paper examines how animal testing is growing day by day and how animal welfare trusts are fighting to ensure the safety of animals against this cruel act. It puts forward the argument that animal testing is indeed wrong and unjust and how it should be banned, as far as the testing of cosmetics, personal care, and household products are concerned. It also discusses how it should be restricted to life-saving research only, when no alternatives are available.
From the Paper "Animal testing exerts innocent animals to discomfort, species extrapolation problems and death. Often animals that have been tested upon are not even given anesthesia to alleviate their pain mainly because many scientists believe that anesthesia would interfere with the test's result. Even though alternatives to animal testing are widely available, there are still many companies that practice this hideous act upon animals."
Abstract In recent years, the standards of the accounting profession have been a subject of great scrutiny. The boom of the 90s changed the business environment tremendously. Financial scandals and out-of-hand executives required the reshaping of the accounting industry. This paper shows that at the forefront of all this is the once-famous accounting firm of Arthur Andersen. The paper examines the history and success story of this firm and then examines the issues surrounding the charges of unethical practise.
Paper Outline
Company Background
The Rise of Arthur Andersen
Implications of the Fall of Arthur Andersen
The Fall of Arthur Andersen
After Enron, WorldCom, and the Fall of Arthur Andersen
Bibliography
From the Paper "In 1997, Andersen paid $7 million to settle fraud allegations arising from an audit of Waste Management Inc. Another whopping $24 million was paid in settlement over allegations that Andersen misrepresented the financial health of American Continental Corp. and its subsidiaries bases in Arizona. On top of that, Andersen was also under investigation by Arizona officials for repeatedly ignoring information that the Baptist Foundation of Arizona was defrauding its customers. After years of clean audits, the foundation was exposed as a multi-million dollar fraud."
Abstract This paper examines how, for the last few decades, the issue of a person's right to choose the time and method of his or her own death has been one of passionate debate in the United States. It looks at how, although suicide has been decriminalized in America, laws against assisting in a suicide remain in place and how medical help for this action has been contested in the courts for years. It provides a definition of physician-assisted suicide and examines several high-profile court cases involving medical intervention in the dying process.
From the Paper "When Dr. Jack Kevorkian helped Alzheimer's patient Janet Adkins commit suicide in 1990, criminal charges were brought against him and then later dropped because ?Michigan law did not specify that facilitating a suicide is criminal.? He then proceeded to assist twenty individuals commit suicide, ?five of them after Michigan passed a ban on assisted suicide in February 1993,? and in November 1993, he was jailed on murder charges. Circuit Judge Richard Kaufman ruled the Michigan law against assisted suicide was unconstitutional on December 13, 1993, however, one year later the Michigan State Supreme Court upheld the ban."
Tags: jack, kevorkian, medication, death, patients, life, support
Abstract This paper looks at euthanasia, the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing death by withholding extreme medical measures for a person or animal suffering from an incurable, often painful, disease or condition. In particular, it examines how the term 'positive euthanasia' has come to refer to actions that actively cause death, such as administering a lethal drug, and how the growing acceptance of positive euthanasia represents a disturbing trend in medical and social ethics. It discusses how much debate has arisen in the United States among physicians, religious leaders, lawyers, and the general public over euthanasia and how, although positive euthanasia is, for the most part, illegal in the United States, physicians may lawfully refuse to prolong life when there is extreme suffering.
From the Paper "Some argue that the euthanasia required as a last resort, when the individual can no longer manage the pain of their illness. However, pain should never justify euthanasia considering the advanced medical techniques currently available to manage pain in almost every circumstance. The real problem is that there are fundamental physician-related barriers to appropriate, humane, and compassionate care for the dying. According to research by Foley (1997), physicians are inadequately trained to assess and manage the multi-factorial symptoms commonly associated with patients' requests for physician-assisted suicide. Only five out of 126 medical schools in the United States require a separate course in the care of the dying. "
Abstract This paper addresses several questions concerning the ethical conduct of pharmaceutical companies. The paper considers whether doctors that sit on the boards of companies can be impartial when they make decisions to financially back research/drugs of the pharmaceutical company they represent, as well as what should be the corporate responsibility of the pharmaceutical companies. Also considered is whether pharmaceutical companies have systems in place to keep them ethically responsible and if advertising by pharmaceutical companies actually creates a demand for prescriptions when no need actually exists. Numerous graphs and tables are included.
From the Paper "Indeed, one of the unique aspects of advertising prescription pharmaceuticals is the caveat "Ask your doctor". The consumer cannot go out and directly purchase the product (note that via the internet this is now possible), but traditionally must receive a physician's endorsement by way of a prescription. The pharmaceutical industry uses this reasoning to defend its promotional tactics, claiming that because doctors ultimately authorize prescriptions the public is insulated from deceptive advertising. Yet research indicates that doctors are likely to prescribe drugs patients request under increasing pressure. Patients often insist on brand names over generic drugs, some of which are just as effective and less costly."
Abstract This paper argues that the lack of a clear law regarding euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide continues to result in confusion and more suffering. It goes on to argue that many debates regarding euthanasia fail to recognize a social component to the practice. Furthermore, because of tremendous societal costs, the paper argues that government at the national, state, and local levels should take a strong stand to keep euthanasia illegal.
From the Paper "The high-profile case of Terri Schiavo has once again focused attention on the issue of euthanasia. Schiavo, who has been in a vegetative state for the past 13 years, brings a face to the legal question of when can a third party decide the fate of patients who cannot decide for themselves. According to Schiavo's husband, Terri would not want to live in her present state. Schiavo's parents, however, disagree. The parents have managed to convince Florida governor Jeb Bush to issue a stay, preventing Terri's husband from having her feeding tube removed (Stern and Goddard)."
Abstract This paper provides a short examination of the ethical problems surrounding the controversial issue of human cloning. It explains that therapeutic human cloning is quite necessary to increase our knowledge of the human body, and it can aid in creating new medical breakthroughs in the future. The ethics of human cloning are certainly contentious, but ultimately, human cloning can only add to our understanding of ourselves and lead to longer lives in the future.
From the Paper "This is not to disregard the ethical implications of creating genetic human duplicates, of course, there are numerous ethical issues facing human cloning. The fundamental ethics of human birth and continuation are at stake here, and even those who condone human cloning recognize the need to keep cloning from becoming a way for parents to choose the sex or intelligence of their child the way they choose produce at the local supermarket. The ethics of cloning indicate that cloning should be used for research and medical purposes only, and should not extend to the cloning of human children for particular parents. One scientific expert states, "As we have noted, the decisive difference between therapeutic cloning and reproductive cloning is the fact that the former never intends to lead to the birth of a cloned human being" (Bedford-Strohm)."
Abstract This paper examines two organisations: Exxon Mobil and The Body Shop. It suggests that in the case of The Body Shop, the presence of an ethical code has increased their commitment to ethical marketing practices. However, in the case of Exxon Mobil, the presence of an ethical code does not necessarily ensure a strong commitment to ethical marketing practices. It concludes that the presense of an ethical code can only increase organisational commitment to ethical marketing practices if it is enforced by either an ethics officer or an ethical awareness programme. In addition, it shows how the effectiveness of ethical codes can vary between organisations and industries.
From the Paper "The Body Shop is an organisation that set themselves tough standards within their code of ethics; their mission is to dedicate its business to the pursuit of environmental and social change (Anon 1, 2004). In an organisational context, the code of ethics has been developed in order to support the marketing objectives and the mission statement of the company. Due to the size of the company, the actions of the Body Shop are visible to the public and the external pressure to manage ethical activities is far greater than that of a smaller company (Weaver, 1993). Therefore, any mismanagement of ethical activities will reflect badly on the company and contradict the high expectations that have been outlined within the code of ethics. Weaver (1993) reinforces this perspective suggesting that it can be potentially dangerous for a company to use ethics as a positioning tool."
Abstract The idea of servant-leadership is not new, and it shares components of ideology that are part of many other current leadership theories. This paper focuses on Robert K. Greenleaf's idea of servant-leadership and its relationship with other leadership theories. It explains how the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership is now the leading promoter of Greenleaf's idea.
From the Paper "Greenleaf's social experience sparked what would become his legacy. During the 1960s, in an attempt to understand why so many young Americans were in rebellion against their country Greenleaf began to explore the idea of serving. Greenleaf, a Quaker, began writing and at the age of 66 published his first work, The Servant as Leader (Spears, 1996, p. 33). It was in this work that he coined the term servant-leadership (Spears, 2002, p. 3). Greenleaf did not originate the concept of servant-leadership, but he did coin the term (Beazley and Beggs, 2002, p. 56) and his influence in promoting the field has helped make it his legacy."
Abstract This paper explains that the issues of ethical conduct, such as retribution, economics, and deterrence, surround the application of capital punishment. The author points out that the idea of retribution, based on the 'golden rule', with one act meriting an equal act of response, is widely used to support the death penalty. The paper states that factoring in the economic costs related to the death sentence can be ethically weighed with reference to Kant's universal law.
From the Paper "Capital punishment has been in use for many years in America, with exception of 1972 to 1976 when it was deemed unconstitutional as cruel and unusual punishment. Over the years capital punishment has been in effect, the fundamentals have not progressed; it is still operating on the original theory in which it was implemented. Based on the historical trends, the current process will not be anymore or less effective at prevention in the future. This is partly due to punishment being a reactionary event, the penalty of death may contribute to the consistency of deviant society, but one would reason that without progression of the process it will not contribute to the evolution of society. As the penalty of death is deemed the maximum punishment possible, the opportunity for advancement exists in preemptive events based on direct and indirect knowledge acquired from the offenders."
Abstract Since the possibility of human cloning was first introduced by the successful cloning of sheep in 1997, there have been arguments both for and against the entire idea. This paper explains that, while both sides of the debate have valid points, from the benefits to humanity to the fear of Nazi-like genetic elimination of "undesirables", the arguments fail to produce clear and concise reasons for either point of view. This paper presents both sides of the cloning debate and attempts to show that, although there are definite moral and ethical issues that need to be addressed, the process of cloning has the potential to be beneficial to all humanity.
From the Paper "In 1997, Scottish scientists at Roslin Institute successfully cloned the sheep "Dolly", and began the debate over the ethical and moral principles surrounding the technology of cloning (Human Genome Project, "Cloning Fact Sheet"). The basic definition of cloning, recognized by most scientists, is the duplication of biological material. In the case of "Dolly", the scientists used the nuclei of various types of sheep cells, and implanted them into an unfertilized egg. The eggs were then planted into a live sheep, and successfully delivered through natural birth. The result was an exact genetic copy of the sheep that produced the original nuclei (Beardsley, 1)."
Abstract This paper discusses positive aspects of physician-assisted suicide, as well as negative views on the topic. The researcher supports both sides with various peer-reviewed journal articles. In the conclusion, the opinion of the researcher is discussed in a favor of legalizing physician-assisted suicide with restraint.
From the Paper "In 1997 the United States Supreme Court made a ruling that indicated that there was no constitutional right for an individual to have physician-assisted suicide (Snyder & Sulmasy, 2001). The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, however, did make a ruling that individuals have the right to choose when and how they wish to die (Snyder & Sulmasy, 2001). Because of this, competent and terminally ill individuals who wished for a lethal dose of prescription medication found that they had a right to this because it was unconstitutional to ban them for choosing this particular type of life-ending measure."
