Strictly business wise, if it was legal, then yes even if it was unethical as long as it was legal. With regards to buisness, I'm trying to make money not freinds. I would also expect my oppenets to try and do the same to me. Outside of buisness or my livelihood, I defintly would not do anything unethical.
Synonyms for unethical:Definition: dishonest, immoral
Synonyms: cheating, corrupt, crooked, dirty*, dirty-dealing, dishonorable, disreputable, double-crossing, fake, fishy, flimflam, fly-by-night, illegal, improper, mercenary, scam*, shady*, sharp*, slick*, slippery*, sneaky*, two-faced, two-timing, underhand, unfair, unprincipled, unprofessional, unscrupulous, wrong
Antonyms for ethical:bad, black, dishonest, dishonorable, evil, evil-minded, immoral, indecent, sinful, unethical, unrighteous, wicked, wrong
'Unethical' has a dispassionate clinical ring to it that could make one assume it isn't all that pejorative, but in actuality, if you're being unethical, you're treating someone else improperly. I think it's important to understand the true meaning of the word and not hide behind it's least pejorative synonym. I'm not saying you're doing this, I just want to make sure that you're aware that being unethical is the same thing as being immoral, being dishonorable, being indecent. You may very well be saying, I'm going to cheat my competitors, because I expect them to cheat me. If that's the case, then we're on the same page in regards to the meaning of the word 'unethical,' but let's call a spade a spade, and not play any word connotation games.
Governments attempt to take the common morality of a society and codify it into laws, and, most of the time they succeed, but not all the time. You can be a truly rotten person and yet still be law abiding. Look at the subprime lenders who's actions contributed to the 2008 financial crisis. They did nothing illegal, but their immoral actions plunged America into one of our worst economic times ever. People starved to death because of their lack of ethics. By only abiding by the law, you can still do a tremendous amount of damage to your fellow man.
Jesus said "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." He didn't say "Do unto everyone but your business competitors"
Every major world religion has some form of the golden rule. Even if you're an atheist, there's still valid reasons to be honorable in your dealings with your competitors. First, we live in the information age. Even if you don't believe that a higher power is watching you, you had better believe that other people are. Secrets don't stay secrets for long. Bill alluded to how important your reputation is. If your customers, your superiors, your trade partners or your vendors catch wind of your dishonorable actions, it will hurt your bottom line. Second, God or no God, we all have an innate desire to be good people. We all judge ourselves. When we're not honest, when we cheat to achieve our goals, it's damaging to our self esteem. Study after study has proven that people are happier when they're giving to others. Legally stealing from others, even our competitors, has the opposite effect.
No-one is telling you not to be competitive or to be weak. Ethics are part of our strength. They create the playing field that allows us to be greater, to rise higher. Evolutionary biology reveals the older reptilian part of our brain that has no morals, that's incapable of trust, that only acts through self preservation, but biology also reveals the newer mammalian section of our brain- a section that understands the life enriching aspects of morality, of shared goals, of being nurturing, of having empathy. If you watch any reality TV, you're fully aware of how frequently people turn to the reptilian section of their brain to make decisions, but, at the same time, with each new generation, we are shedding more and more of our reptilian skin.
No one here is pointing a finger at you. I think we all struggle with ethical decisions, and, at some point, we all have acted dishonorably. Members have expressed sadness with your post because they perceive your dog eat dog outlook as leading to a less fulfilling, less happy life- and we all want you to be happy.
