Posted by Professor Comisso
on March 15, 2009, 10:27 am, in reply to "Optional prompt/question: the text "
69.232.78.179
For whatever reason, I was unable to link back to the original posting of the instructions and the question. So, here it is in full again:
This is the actual text of the optional question.
FINAL EXAM: OPTIONAL QUESTION
All of the following case studies deal with an aspect of the financial meltdown we are currently experiencing: from home mortgages to their securitization to the insuring of securities to the monetary incentives and payoffs surrounding these activites. The articles all appear on the Ethics and Society webpage in the section on business ethics; the title given below refers to how they are listed on the web page, which may be a little different from the literal tital of the article.
1. Choose ONE of the following case studies as the empirical basis for your discussion:
a. The actions that caused the (near) collapse of Merrill Lynch, as described in the article posted as “Merrill Lynch: What Went Wrong;”
b. The business strategy of AIG, as described in the article posted as “AIG’s House of Cards;”
c. The actions of some real estate brokers in Oceanside, as recounted by Zach Fox of the North County Times in his article, “Handful of brokers linked to glut of foreclosures;” or
d. The bonuses distributed to executives of financial institutions over the past decade on the basis of profits that were wiped out soon after, as described in the article(s) “After huge losses, a move to reclaim bonuses” and “Titans of an age no longer golden”
2. PRINT a copy of it to bring to the the exam for reference. You may underline and/or highlight relevant parts of the article, but you may NOT write notes on it. Staple the pages of the study together, and write your name on it. You will hand this in at the start of the final exam, and you will retrieve it when you have completed the first, mandatory, part of the exam.
3. Then, based on the case study of your choice, ANSWER the following question.
The financial meltdown we are currently witnessing has a breadth and a scope not seen since the Great Depression. Literally, trillions of dollars in wealth have been destroyed in the process, with widespread, indeed, global ramifications for how “persons” live in both the United States and the rest of the world. It is tempting to attribute a calamity of this scale to unethical, negligent, and/or irresponsible actions taken by greedy and unscrupulous individuals. But is this view valid? Were the actors involved in the case study you have chosen guilty of making unethical choices? Why or why not?
If you make an argument to the effect that the actions described in your case study were unethical, explain why and show why someone arguing that these actions were reasonable and appropriate actions under the circumstances—mistakes only in the light o hindsight--is wrong. Try to show, if you can, that the overall calamity would not have happened or been significantly less consequential had individuals observed ethical constraints.
If you wish to argue that the actions described in the case study were legitimate and appropriate responses to the opportunities of the market, explain why and why the view that holds them to be unscrupulous acts of individuals willfully ignoring the costs or their actions is wrong. Try to indicate, if you can, what—if anything--might be done to prevent the negative consequences described in your case study from reoccurring.
Grading: Answering this question is optional, and will not affect your grade on the first, mandatory part of the exam. If your answer to this question is judged to be of a quality that merits a B+ or better, ½ a grade will be added to your final course grade.
If your answer is not of a quality to merit a B+ or better, your course grade will reflect your performance on the papers, final exam, and attendance and participation in section.
Evaluations of the answers to the optional question will not be distributed on a curve.
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