Quote:
Originally Posted by skylark
A lot of people are like this, sadly. If you don't make it impossible for them to explain how they are not in violation of a rule, they don't think they are. What through me was that in all other respects, he is one of the most ethical people I know. Seriously.
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No doubt a lot are that way, and I think more are getting that way as we focus more on achievement than we do on character as they grow up. Now, I can't point to a golden age of good character or anything; I just think that if you ask our grandparents what might happen to such a person, they'd have a different sense of him basically being at least a partial failure as a human being because he was willing to cheat and if you asked college kids today, they basically expect a certain amount of corruption.
To tell you the truth, I think the interest and emphasis on "gamesmanship" rather than "sportsmanship" in athletics sort of goes along with it. It's a cultural issue in which we now basically celebrate the ways that people seek to get an edge whether it's actually ethical or not.
I can't tell you how bizarre it is to me that kids cheat to maintain the grades to be in "honor" societies, but as you said, I don't think they think cheating generally reflects on their character. They don't see it as being a fundamental lie.
ETA: I'm not trying to present myself as squeaky clean, but for the most part I was blessed by not caring about my grades enough to be tempted to cheat. If I hadn't done the work, I'd just turn in what I could pull off on my own.