I have seen good people become, if not actively evil, certainly not good any more. This has happened often enough in my life and disturbed me enough, that I have tried to figure out what happened. I don't believe people are born evil. Despite all of the challenges in the world, plenty of people reach young adulthood and sometimes even middle age as relatively ethical human beings - honesty, loyal, trustworthy, generous.
Perhaps the ethical values they really lack are courage and fortitude. Here is what I have seen happen. Someone, let's call her Donna, gets appointed or elected to a position. She promised changes in all of the abuses seen in giving preferential treatment to relatives, programs where workers put in 25 hours and were paid for 40, expenses charged for travel that didn't happen and more. She honestly meant every word she said. Donna got her position because people in the community respected her. She had always done a good job, worked hard, been fair with her employees and helpful to her coworkers.
In her first month on the job, a vote comes up in tribal council on the budget for a program Donna believes is very important to the community, even though the director is someone who has a lot of political enemies. Mark casts the deciding vote and the program keeps its funding.
Three weeks later, Donna comes across proof that Mark has taken about $2,000 in tribal equipment and given it to his son to use in his own business. She takes this information to the business manager who gently advises,
Donna takes this advice and does not say a word. She reasons that she needs Mark as an ally, especially with that cranky Alan on the council, who votes against everything, when he does show up and not sleep through the meetings. What about all of those people who really need services and, if Mark and Alan voted against them, would just be without meals on wheels, day care, tutoring and treatment programs. Donna really cares about the community and seeing the best happen.
A few months go by and Donna notices a program manager loading a case of printer paper in her car. Later, she hears a relative of the manager saying how nice it is that she does not have to buy school supplies for her five children because her auntie brings them over, and how much of a help that is.
Donna tells herself that families are very important in our tradition, the manager is not doing it for herself and, besides, why make an enemy over $25 worth of paper?
Edmund Burke, in the 18th century, said,
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
Over 2,000 years earlier, Plato said, The greatest penalty of evildoing - namely, to grow into the likeness of bad men.
This is what inevitably happens to people like Donna. Sure enough, six months more go by and there is a conference in Hawaii. Donna really doesn't need to go to the conference, but she reasons that she never takes equipment like Mark, she doesn't give office supplies out, she attends every meeting and works every day. Besides, she could bring her daughter, and that would be a very good experience for her. Her daughter has missed out because of all of Donna's work and now here is her chance to benefit.
Do you notice what happened here? Donna fought hard to get her position because she sincerely wanted to make a change. Yet, once she was there, step by step, and with the best of intentions and explanations, she became like the people in the system she was determined to change.
There are some people who get elected to council or accept a committee appointment thinking at that moment, "Now it's my turn to get mine." A lot of workers, though, really do start out with the intention to do well. Bit by bit, they slide into justifications and habits of taking the easy way.
The root causes, I think, are a lack of courage and fortitude, which I think are two sides of the same virtue. Courage is overcoming your fears and doing the right thing, and perseverance is persisting in doing what is right, even in the face of opposition.
The quote,
"As we act, let us not become the evil that we deplore."
was from Representative Barbara Lee when she cast the ONLY vote in congress against authorizing President Bush to use force as necessary - this was three days after September 11, 2001. She explained her vote as an act of conscience. She knew the vote would pass anyway but she sincerely believed it put civil liberties at risk and did not restrict the president's power to wage war, both actions not in the best interest of the American people. So, the vote passed the house 420 -1 .
Do you think Representative Lee was the only one in the house that day who had reservations about the bill? Her questions and concerns were not uncommon, but her courage was.
It really is a slippery slope from the agent for change to part of the system. Sadly, I have to say that it is a rare person who does not slide down it. I think I know how this happens. What I don't know is why? What is the difference between the Donnas and the Barbara Lees of the world? Is it as simple as courage and strength?
Perhaps the ethical values they really lack are courage and fortitude. Here is what I have seen happen. Someone, let's call her Donna, gets appointed or elected to a position. She promised changes in all of the abuses seen in giving preferential treatment to relatives, programs where workers put in 25 hours and were paid for 40, expenses charged for travel that didn't happen and more. She honestly meant every word she said. Donna got her position because people in the community respected her. She had always done a good job, worked hard, been fair with her employees and helpful to her coworkers.
In her first month on the job, a vote comes up in tribal council on the budget for a program Donna believes is very important to the community, even though the director is someone who has a lot of political enemies. Mark casts the deciding vote and the program keeps its funding.
Three weeks later, Donna comes across proof that Mark has taken about $2,000 in tribal equipment and given it to his son to use in his own business. She takes this information to the business manager who gently advises,
"You are new here and Mark could be a powerful enemy. Don't you remember how he voted your way on that program? If he hadn't, all of those people would not be getting the services they need. That is a $400,000 a year budget. Do you want to risk that for a measly $2,000? Just pretend you never found out about this."
Donna takes this advice and does not say a word. She reasons that she needs Mark as an ally, especially with that cranky Alan on the council, who votes against everything, when he does show up and not sleep through the meetings. What about all of those people who really need services and, if Mark and Alan voted against them, would just be without meals on wheels, day care, tutoring and treatment programs. Donna really cares about the community and seeing the best happen.
A few months go by and Donna notices a program manager loading a case of printer paper in her car. Later, she hears a relative of the manager saying how nice it is that she does not have to buy school supplies for her five children because her auntie brings them over, and how much of a help that is.
Donna tells herself that families are very important in our tradition, the manager is not doing it for herself and, besides, why make an enemy over $25 worth of paper?
Edmund Burke, in the 18th century, said,
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
Over 2,000 years earlier, Plato said, The greatest penalty of evildoing - namely, to grow into the likeness of bad men.
This is what inevitably happens to people like Donna. Sure enough, six months more go by and there is a conference in Hawaii. Donna really doesn't need to go to the conference, but she reasons that she never takes equipment like Mark, she doesn't give office supplies out, she attends every meeting and works every day. Besides, she could bring her daughter, and that would be a very good experience for her. Her daughter has missed out because of all of Donna's work and now here is her chance to benefit.
Do you notice what happened here? Donna fought hard to get her position because she sincerely wanted to make a change. Yet, once she was there, step by step, and with the best of intentions and explanations, she became like the people in the system she was determined to change.
There are some people who get elected to council or accept a committee appointment thinking at that moment, "Now it's my turn to get mine." A lot of workers, though, really do start out with the intention to do well. Bit by bit, they slide into justifications and habits of taking the easy way.
The root causes, I think, are a lack of courage and fortitude, which I think are two sides of the same virtue. Courage is overcoming your fears and doing the right thing, and perseverance is persisting in doing what is right, even in the face of opposition.
The quote,
"As we act, let us not become the evil that we deplore."
was from Representative Barbara Lee when she cast the ONLY vote in congress against authorizing President Bush to use force as necessary - this was three days after September 11, 2001. She explained her vote as an act of conscience. She knew the vote would pass anyway but she sincerely believed it put civil liberties at risk and did not restrict the president's power to wage war, both actions not in the best interest of the American people. So, the vote passed the house 420 -1 .
Do you think Representative Lee was the only one in the house that day who had reservations about the bill? Her questions and concerns were not uncommon, but her courage was.
It really is a slippery slope from the agent for change to part of the system. Sadly, I have to say that it is a rare person who does not slide down it. I think I know how this happens. What I don't know is why? What is the difference between the Donnas and the Barbara Lees of the world? Is it as simple as courage and strength?
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