So just how important is it to tell the truth?
As a motivational speaker, I was recently speaking to a group of high school students about the importance of telling the truth and making the right choices. What qualified me to make this presentation - personal experience…perhaps one of the best teachers in life. Having spent time in Federal prison for making unethical decisions, I know first hand the impact that choices have in our life. I am not proud of those decisions, but, likewise, refuse to hide the fact that I made them and that the impact they had on my life were - well - life changing.
As reported in the Wall Street Journal law blog, MLB’s home run hitter Barry Bonds has been indicted for - well simply put - “lying!” http://blogs.wsj.com/law/
The post in the WSJ Blog states: “Bonds joins a line of individuals stretching from Alger Hiss to Martha Stewart to Scooter Libby to who were indicted not for commiting an underlying crime, but for lying to investigators. Each time this happens, critics argue that a perjury prosecution is nothing more than an excuse for overzealous prosecutors to bring a headline-grabbing case against a boldfaced name. On the other hand, in pursuing such well-known figures, the feds hope to send a message to the meek and mighty alike: Don’t lie.”
I couldn’t agree more. Whether Bonds is convicted like Martha Stewart or not…the fact remains that the consequences of lying can have dramatic, life-changing effects. Take it from one who knows, “Club Fed” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. It’s prison and no one I know wants to be there.
I routinely speak to business groups and associations on ethics, choices, consequences and their total effect. Every choice has a consequence - and the sooner we recognize that telling the truth is a choice the quicker we control the type of consequences we face. I personally perfer ”positive results” from the choices I make.
What about you? Comments?
Barry Bonds Image from the Wall Street Journal Law Blog
1 comment:
You were preaching to a choir member. (I did time in the state pen.)
I am not surprised about Bonds and getting caught for lying to the the feds. (Clinton lied too - about sex.)
But that is where the rubber meets the road: to what level or extreme do we harass or deem illegal behaviors of people? Do I care what mr. Bonds does to further his baseball career, assuming that hGH and steroids did enhance him as so, so many definitely think it did? (Baseball is unlike track & field , football or other sports - it is more hand-eye coordination. Leaving aside the most pertinent allegation/fact: the baseball has been modified time and again.) And do I want to criminalize steroid usage, to protect kids, while I let other pharmaceutical drugs (that harm more kids proportionally) go their own way?
Should he have lied? No. But if a person who has a personal flaw (cheats on his wife - Bonds did that too - like Clinton) is expected to bare all for the world to see, is that going to change them? Sure. Embarassment does that. But isn't that coersive and controlling? Yes. Definitely.
People are flawed in more ways than can be dreamed of. But not every flaw should be to the public's knowledge. (And some that are will be considered immoral.)
Think of homosexuality. Do I have a right to know what person's sexual habits are - in regards to some other crim. investigation? (And plenty of prosecutors will use that as a query to obtain some dirt on the prospective defendant.)
If a person didn't mame, kill, take money ill-gotten, or otherwise defraud people, very little deserves prosecution. Bonds didn't defraud me - the fan - because I am at the ballpark for entertainment, not just to wanton off an outcome. (The gamblers have their own problems to deal with: let them learn the errors of that way, the hard way.) He receive his money in a fair way: contractually, from a billionaire org. The only person he mamed was himself.
I understand your a motivational speaker, and that it is probably a good line of work to fall into, after spending time in the big house. Don't take this the wrong way, but I didn't have much to start with before my sentence - a middling job, no possessions and a family that makes the Adams family look like American Gothic.It is difficult for me to set aside a 27-month conviction for Stalking. (And no, I had no physical actions that warranted the imprisonment.)
Because in my particular case: the victim submitted false accusations, characterizations and obvious lies that a petty judge deemed true. More importantly, my family, and so-called friends, suggested I plea out. (I was guilty of violation of a protective order via email.) My legal representation - not that they really matter much, since I had to go with a P.D. - was nil.
As a result, my felony precludes me from many jobs I could do worthwhile. (I assume you did a white collar crime, therefore, people don't figure you as a harm. May not trust you with their money, but you're harmless.)
Point is: yes I KNOW about ethics. I was a young Industrial Engineer that actually tried to tow that line for my fellow workers that were under my labor standards and safety regulations. I did my best to fulfill mgmt. and labor needs.
My personal life sucked. My relationship with a woman destroyed my life. (And yes, it was some of my fault. Not 100%.)
She acted unethical, and was rewarded, whilst I received punishment. And My punishment has not ended - even after probation. Because my financial woes continue, I can't stand my immediate family (and their financially ruinous behavior) and I have to swallow my pride or my story. (And I do tell people the truth, it just doesn't always improve things with them.)
Yes, I'm bitter. And bitter is not better. I've heard the speach - my father was a convict too. (And did nothing of value to help, after he knew his son was heading down.)
Ultimately, all the motivational things I can read (and I do look for a light) will only be truly motivational when I can see feedback that is taking me out of this entire situation to a more worthwhile predicament.
Thanks for the stop by.
Post a Comment