Ethics Paper5

Ethics Paper5 Ethics Paper5 Ethical values are essential to the progress of all individuals and of any nation. Ethical values are crucial to the functioning of all business in general and society as a whole. Business and society depend on individuals making personal ethical decisions that are fundamental to responsible business operations and to an orderly society. "The purpose of ethics in accounting and business is to direct business men and women to abide by a code of conduct that facilities public confidences in their product and services" (Dr. Smith, L Murphy). The accounting profession has a long history of contributions to the efficient functioning of business operations, the capital market system and the economy in general. In the wake of corporate scandals and a struggling world economy, we look back at the accounting scandal at Enron, from an ethical perspective, the company which the media portrayed was the last straw that broke the camel's back. Enron was a large energy, commodities and services c ompany, marketing electricity and natural gas, and providing financial and risk management services around the world (Cunningham, Lawrence 2002). Enron Corporation was created in 1985, shortly after the federal deregulation of natural gas in North America. Enron was formed by the merger of two natural-gas pipeline companies, Houston Natural Gas, one based in Houston, and the other in Nebraska, InterNorth (Dobson, John 2002). The merged company owned 37,000 miles of intra- and interstate pipelines for transporting natural gas between producers and utilities. The complex industrial structure of Enron was vast and only understood by a few people outside of Enron at the time of its filing for bankruptcy in December 2001. There was no clear picture or complete information as to the true levels of its assets, liabilities and offbalance-sheet positions (Cornford, Andrew, 2002). This was a far cry from the firm which, in the 1980s, specialized in the provision of natural gas pipelines and r elated services (Cornford, Andrew, 2002). From these humble origins, Enron expanded relentlessly into trading activities in more 1,800 products or contracts and thirteen currencies which included bandwidth, pulp and paper, and contracts such as weather and credit derivatives (Cornford, Andrew, 2002). It was in connection with expansion into trading that Enron engaged in increasingly aggressive and creative accounting (Cornford, Andrew, 2002). The core of the Enron debacle are said to be accounting chicanery related to off-balance sheet financing, related party transactions and colossal failures of board oversight (Cunningham, Lawrence 2002). These accounting, corporate and auditing issues included the use of complex but apparently compliant accounting rules to mask or defer recognition of liabilities and losses; the development and sale by investment banks of complex accounting-driven structures and products to assist corporations to hide losses and liabilities, and thereby improve their published financial condition and credit ratings; and the introduction of highly leveraged employee stock option plans (Travis, Anthony 2002). It became clear in the SEC investigation that Enron had failed during the preceding four years to make proper disclosure concerning various â€Å"related party transactions† and to properly account for â€Å"off-balance sheet† transactions (Cunningham, Lawrence 2002). This resulted with twenty percent of Enron’s shareholders’ equity wiped out–a total of $2.2 billion. Enron’s external auditor was Arthur Andersen, which also provided the firm with extensive internal auditing and consulting services. In light of Enron's bankruptcy filing and following SEC investigation, Arthur Andersen, auditor and provider of consultancy

The Four Roman Gods of the Wind

The Four Roman Gods of the Wind The Romans personified the four winds, corresponding with cardinal relationships as gods, as did the Greeks. Both peoples gave the winds individual names and roles in mythology.   Gettin Windy With It Here are the winds, according to their domains. They are called the  Venti, the winds, in Latin, and the  Anemoi  in Greek. Boreas (Greek)/Septentrio, a.k.a. Aquilo  (Latin) - North WindNotos (Greek)/Auster  (Latin) - South WindEurus (Greek)/Subsolanus (Latin) - East WindZephyr (Greek)/Favonius (Latin) - West Wind Whats Up With the Winds? The winds pop up all over Roman texts. Vitruvius identifies a whole lot of winds. Ovid  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹Ã¢â‚¬â€¹recounts how the winds came to be:  The world’s maker did not allow these, either, to possess the air indiscriminately; as it is they are scarcely prevented from tearing the world apart, each with its blasts steering a separate course. The brothers were kept apart, each with his own job.   Eurus/Subsolanus went back to the east, the realms of dawn, also known as Nabataea, Persia, and the heights under the morning light. Zephyr/Favonius hung out with Evening, and the coasts that cool in the setting sun. Boreas/Septentrio seized Scythia  and the seven stars of the Plough [Ursa Major], while Notos/Auster drenches the lands opposite [the northern lands of Boreas, a.k.a. the south] with incessant clouds and rain. According to Hesiod in his  Theogony, And from Typhoeus come boisterous winds which blow damply, except Notus and Boreas and clear  Zephyr. In Catulluss Carmina, the poet talks about his friend Furiuss villa. He recites, The blasts of Auster, Furius, miss your villa. Favonius, Apeliotes (a minor god of the southeast wind), Boreas skirt the estate†¦ That mustve been a really good spot for a house! Poor Zephyr didnt merit a mention here, although he was involved in the love affairs of the god Apollo. Both guys fell in love with the hunky youth Hyacinthus, and, angry at Hyacinthus favoring his other suitor, Zephyros caused the discus the hottie was throwing to hit him in the head and kill him.​ Bad Boy Boreas In Greek myth, Boreas is perhaps best known as the rapist and abductor of the Athenian princess Oreithyia. He kidnapped her while she was playing by the riverside. Oreithyia bore her husband daughters, Cleopatra and Chione, and winged sons, Zetes and Calais, ​according to Pseudo-Apollodorus. The boys ended up becoming heroes in their own right as sailors on the Argo  with Jason (and, eventually, Medea). Cleopatra married the Thracian king Phineus  and had two sons with him, whom their father blinded when their eventual stepmother accused  them of hitting on her. Others say that Phineuss in-laws, Zetes and Calais, saved him from the Harpies stealing his food. Chione had an affair with Poseidon and gave birth a son, Eumolpus; so her father  wouldnt find out, Chione dumped him into the ocean. Poseidon raised him and gave him to his own half-sister, his daughter, to raise. Eumolpus ended up marrying one of his guardians daughters, but he tried to get with his sister-in-law. Eventually, when war broke out between Eumolpuss allies, the Eleusinians, and his grandmothers people, the Athenians, the king of Athens, Erechtheus, Oreithyias father, ended up killing Eumolpus, his great-grandson. Boreas kept up his kinship with the Athenians. According to Herodotus in his  Histories, during wartime, the Athenians asked their windy in-law to blow the enemys ships to pieces. It worked! Writes Herodotus, I cannot say whether this was the cause of  Boreas  falling upon the barbarians as they lay at anchor, but the Athenians say that he had come to their aid before and that he was the agent this time.