Ethics

Pete Rose: The man spent 15 years telling everyone and anyone who would listen that yes, he gambled, but he never bet on baseball games. Finally, in his 2004 book "My Prison Without Bars", Rose admits to having gambled on the sport, though he says he never bet against his own team. (Seigel, E, & Kanalley, C. 2010) So What? This is not the first time a   famous person has lied and it's more than likely not the last time a famous person will lie. Sometimes a lie, a false statement with deliberate intent to deceive, seems the perfect response: a mom lies about a daughters where-abouts to the drunken husband threatening to harm her, a doctor telling a patient that they have a 50-50 chance of living when the Dr is confident enough to know that they will only live a year. When perfect honesty may seem second best next to values like compassion, respect and justice, when trying to do the right thing. Many religious traditions and philosophical have long claimed that rarely is a lie permissible. (Mazut, T.) So, then, what is the truth about lying? According to the definitions in the American Bar Association Rules of Professional Conduct say that "Know” means actual knowledge. Well, we only have “actual knowledge” about what we have personally witnessed or actually have the facts in black and white, right? If every person was to believe only what they have seen and not things that people tell them then this whole world would be corrupted. People have a natural tendency to believe what is told to them. Who do you know that will actually go and look everything up that someone has told them. They would then spend all their time doing that and not get anything done with their lives. Some lawyers have a tendency to believe some of what is told to them, people lie all the time and this they know. This is the reason that cases are based on facts of what you can prove and not just by someone telling them something. Lawyers who get in the habit of reasoning that they do not "know"... [continues]

Read full essay