Greed’s ties to Technology and Values (By guest blogger, Organizational Psychiatrist: David E. Morrison, M.D.) The bloggers for this web page and authors of The A.B.C.s of Behavioral Forensics (Wiley, 2013) argue that the motivations for fraud lie much deeper than the conventional wisdom’s diagnosis, “greed.” As a consulting psychiatrist, I fully endorse that argument. […]
(By Vic Hartman) Americans’ perception that bankers and Wall Street fat cats escaped accountability for their role in the recent financial crisis has not gone unnoticed by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The difficulties in prosecuting these executives has also been discussed on these blog pages, see “How To Explain the Mortgage Fraud Crisis: A […]
(HOW DO CIVILIZED SOCITIES AND PEOPLE RESPOND?) (By Joe Koletar)At about 4:30PM, Eastern Time, media reports began to come in about a series of coordinated and deadly attacks in and around Paris. As of the time of writing this post, reports continue about possible attacks yet to come. This obviously reminds Americans and others around […]
Say It Ain’t So, GI Joe Here in northern Illinois, we have been witness to an amazing story of deception. As the local news story of a murdered hero cop, “GI Joe”, unfolded this fall, many of us were impacted. Beyond the media coverage, our daily lives were touched: from traffic congestion to several local […]
(By Daven Morrison) This post is some brief follow-up musings regarding the preceding posting by Joe Koletar, KISS (“Keep It Simple, Stupid,” which could also be called, “KISOICM” or, “Keep It Simple; Otherwise I Confuse Myself”). I believe that a part of what was happening in the jury were the challenges of fast and slow […]
(By Joe Koletar) It is an old saying in every branch of the military. It stands for “Keep It Simple, Stupid!” It reflects the reality that we often tend to over-plan and over-prepare, to limit risk and increase our chances of success. While a fair degree of planning and preparation is necessary, too […]
(A NEW VIEW) (By Joe Koletar) We frequently have a tendency to gloss over Letters to The Editor, since they are usually over-heated opinion pieces. Some of them, however, are worth our attention. In the October 10, 2015 edition of The Economist magazine there is such a letter on page 18, titled “What VW Knew.” […]
(By Joe Koletar) It is the title of an old rock‘n roll song by Sonny and Cher. It also seems to capture today’s tone with regard to organizational misconduct. In the last six months we have seen FIFA (the international soccer federation,) VW (the car manufacturer which seems to have fiddled with emissions controls,) and […]
(IS THE U.S. THE WORLD’S WATCHDOG?) (By Joe Koletar) At first glance, soccer balls and Volkswagen (VW) automobiles do not seem to have much in common, but let us look at the two situations a bit more closely. On September 24, 2015 the Wall Street Journal carried the following article on page A-1: “VW CEO […]
(By Joe Koletar) Whistleblowers have, to many, achieved an aura of James Bondesque mystic. The lone wolf, privy to sensitive information, who shrugs off risk. The lone voice in the wilderness, borne on the wings of truth and justice, who navigates the reefs and shoals put up by the opposition, to arrive at the shores […]