Theft at the Public Till
on gathering assets for self. Harvard business school alone has resources enough to provide a free education to thousands annually (but charges $30,500 per student). The current corporate crisis cannot be “blamed” on the business schools. Selfish individuals acted in furtherance of greed. But the climate that both produced and tolerated such behavior starts with the business schools. If business school has some effect on its students then the climate and mindset dealt with at business schools needs to be re-examined in light of the current spate of corporate scandals. Professors cannot be sure that just doing what they have done before is right. Something is rotten in the state of MBA land and it is the schools’ responsibility - at a minimum -- to ensure that they are not merely helping the ethically challenged acquire a sharper toolset with which to assault an unprepared public. As with corporate America so too with government. The media may be focused on Wall Street and corporate executives but the scandalous mindset of rip-offs and abrogation of responsibility to the public does not lie with corporations alone. Government is responsible for more than its fair share of theft, waste, and negligence. Let’s go back a decade. 1 The Boston Globe headlines a series of articles detailing how one of the most powerful financial minds in Massachusetts confused advising his public sector clients with his own interests. The chief of staff of the Governor of New Jersey is forced to resign in answer to alle- gations that his associates used his office to gain business financing public sector projects. A noted black investment banker is found dead in his hotel room of a drug overdose, and the next day the papers are filled with stories about financial scandals involving New York and the banker’s firm. A noted brokerage firm is questioned about giving a piano to the Governor of Kentucky. The SEC feels it necessary to abolish the connec- tion between political contributions and the municipal bond business. The press notes that the new policy applies only to bankers and not to lawyers or consultants. Internal Revenue Service regulations regarding whether a state or local bond is exempt from Federal taxation have a lengthy section dealing with “fees” diverted to interested parties.
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