Michael Bluemel

Professor Dave Alldredge

June 19, 2017

No Man Is An Island
The result is not what you think

Its 2012 and I am living in Mexico City working on a project with a number of other
youth. We have rules. We have goals. We have time constraints. It was this culmination of factors
that provided the opportunity for me to learn how the simplest of choices can have a large effect
on so many different aspects and people.
These goals combined with the time constraints led to the choice to break rules; many of
them were very small (such as rationalizing time spent and stretching numbers to make it look
like more was being accomplished). Little by little, these stretched numbers called for results of
the larger things that had nothing to back them up. This led to some creativity combined with
stupidity that caused some of us to make very unethical decisions (coercing people to do things
they didnt want to do in exchange for money). After some time (from around 2009 to 2012),
these decisions caught up to everyone involved and even including many of those that were not
involved.
This led to nearly 50% of the people working on the project (whether they were completely
involved in the scheme or not) to be removed. This also caused a lot of heartache for those that
knew about what was happening and struggled to blow the whistle and even for those that had to
execute disciplinary action. Lastly, it is unimaginable how difficult it may have been for those that
took the payment for their decisions to do things they didnt want to do. No one benefitted at
least not in the long-run.
Personally, I learned first-hand the effects of decisions and how simple decisions (to doctor
the numbers) can lead to something that is not only detrimental to those that make poor
decisions, but can also hurt those that are indirectly connected. This is the lesson that has most
greatly influenced my ethical identity because it touched so many of the points that are

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important to me. Through it, I have become the person that understands that anytime I might
think about getting caught, then I am making a wrong decision and that decision is just the
beginning of something bigger.
A great example of this snowball effect is how the hole that confined Bernie Madoff in
2008 was ultimately the result of what was probably just one small rationalization to stretch the
numbers leading to another poor decision and then another. Bernie didnt think I am going to
screw over 4,800 people of $64 billion and land myself in prison, but Im sure he started the
scheme with the thought that its just $5 and no one will miss $5. Little by little, he found that
he could help his clients to make a profit and make a handful of cash at the same time. How
bad could it be to take money from my new clients to give back to my existing clients? There will
always be someone new to get involved.
Everything is connected to each other. My personal decisions affect my work life and vice
versa. Not only do they affect my work life, but my decisions at work affects my personal life. My
emotional decisions can have an effect on my bank account and likewise, my financial decisions
can have an effect on my emotional state. These decisions among others can all have an effect on
more than 4,800 people (whether I know them or not).

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