Our Fight for Freedom Here at Home: The War on Ethics
by I write this anonymously under a pen name because I must keep silent from where I am at now. There is heavy retaliation against me. My reputation has been slandered and marred. I’m a soldier in the War on Ethics here at home. Because of soldiers like me who work behind-the-scenes and take a stand for integrity, our government has not gone completely corrupt.
My husband is active military and has been away to other countries, defending our freedoms, more than he has been home. His fight is a visual fight. You can see it on the news or even watch TV programs that highlight charitable events towards soldiers’ families. I do not want to downplay the War on Terror by any means, but there is a war here at home that does not get as much media attention: I am choosing to call this the War on Ethics.
I have been a public servant in state government for about seven years. I had a “break” in service after one temporary appointment, so only five years truly counts on my “permanent” record. In those five years, I have promoted up rather quickly, especially for someone still in their twenties. I went from Office Assistant to Revenue Officer to Lead Auditor 4 to Information Technology Specialist 3. Every jump included an additional five hundred dollars in my monthly paycheck.
The higher up I have gone, the more politics I have been around. The more I have seen, the more I have become physically ill at the lack of ethics-and the lack of concern among fellow public servants.
As a governmental employee, I have never forgotten-not for one single day-where my paycheck comes from. Taxes. The People. I am work, “for the people and by the people.” Regardless of who my stakeholders are in each position, I know that ultimately, I am serving the People.
Sometimes we have to pick our battles. Sometimes we will see “small” violations of policy or law. Perhaps it’s just something non-material like “diminis use” of government property. For example, a co-worker accessing Match.com on their break. They are using government property for something that isn’t work-related. That is a violation. Do I say anything? If it’s an isolated event, probably not. No one is getting hurt, they aren’t using it to excess, it is limited to their break-time, it’s not ruining productivity, etc. Classic situational ethics.
But what happens if the co-worker begins to buy and sell stocks using their agency computer? That is not only a violation of the “diminis use” policy but is also a conflict of interest. The other situation is as well, but there is an unspoken hierarchy of ethical evils, and this now tips the balance.
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