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Unethical Behavior

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Illegal and unethical practices in our business world are something that goes far beyond anything that is reported in the news. We need to be holding the people who are in positions of power and influence to a much higher level of accountability for the unethical actions they perform. The United States is looked upon as a leader in the world, or at least we used to be. We as a nation trust the people that we elect to be acting with the highest level of integrity and ethics that we know. But of course this doesn’t just go for our elected officials, but for individuals who are looked up to by millions, such as our sports athletes, or our entertainers, alike singers. When I say the name Brett Favre, what do you think? Powerful? Incredible Athlete? Devoted Team Member? Honorable, Faithful Husband? Maybe all of the above? I have always been a huge fan of the NFL and continue to be a loyal fan of the Patriots and the Packers. Brett Favre has proven to be a leader among any of the teams in the NFL, leading the Packers to eight division championships (1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2009), five NFC Championship Games (1995, 1996, 1997, 2007, 2009), and two Super Bowl appearances (Super Bowl XXXI, Super Bowl XXXII), winning one (Super Bowl XXXI). Favre is the only quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 70,000 yards, over 500 touchdowns, over 300 interceptions, and over 10,000 pass attempts. (Brett Favre, N.D) WOW!! Wouldn’t we all agree that he is a phenomenal athlete? With all of his fame, his addiction to prescription pain killers made many people change their mind about what they think of Brett Favre. In the mid 1990’s he was prescribed Vicodin for an ankle injury. He openly admits in an interview that he became very dependent upon the prescription pain killers. How about his sexting scandal that he was busted with? Or cheating on his wife Deanna with Jenn Sterger and being busted doing it? This is a man that our young boys look up to as a role model. He is in a very high position of power and fame; therefore he needs to be held to a higher standard than other people. With his actions, he is showing our young children that it’s okay to be unfaithful and to cheat on your spouse. Like I said earlier, I have always been a very loyal fan of the Patriots and the Packers. After I read all the details on the accusations toward Brett, and then him openly admitting to them I lost a lot of respect and no longer consider myself a fan of the Packers. In a report by Chris Eggemeyer, “His has become the habit of the post-Green Bay Brett Favre. Couple that with this recent sex scandal and it would seem that the Vikings not only lost the game, but they may have lost their quarterback. In fact, Brett Favre may be costing himself the Hall of Fame (or at least a chance at being enshrined pre-mortem).” (Eggemeyer, 2010) My next example saddens me to even talk about. I am a huge advocate of this company, especially having worked for them for 4 years, and still would love to be re-employed by this Cell phone Giant!! “Verizon Wireless will, indeed, be doling out one of the largest customer refunds in history, and definitely the largest FCC settlement ever recorded. Verizon Wireless has agreed to pay $25 million to the U.S. government and at least $52.8 million in refunds to approximately 15 million customers who were overcharged when built-in phone software accessed mobile networks and the Web.” (Schwartz, 2010) Anyone who has a cell phone has heard of MegaByte usage is and how it is billed to the amount of $1.99/mb. Verizon Wireless has taken many steps to change this feature, and guarantee that something like this never happens again. Verizon Wireless is a huge icon to America, and something like this shouldn’t change how you feel about them, if they are your carrier. Although they had a billing issue and reimbursed the customers who needed the reimbursement, Verizon Wireless does many good things for the country as well. Many people don’t know that Verizon Wireless operates vehicles called COWs and COLTs. Rapid Disaster Response – COLTs - Verizon Wireless "Cell on Light Trucks" (COLTs) can process thousands of calls every hour in the event cell sites or other key communications equipment are damaged or disabled by a community disaster. Verizon Wireless was the ONLY network that was working after the disaster of Hurricane Katrina. Without the help of these 25,000- pound vehicle featuring two retractable masts, a microwave antenna to link network components, an emergency power generator and a small office, nobody in the disaster area would have been able to call out, or receive calls. The COLT is also fully equipped with resources needed during emergencies including equipment, fuel, electrical generators, food, water and cots. Portable Cell Sites – COWs Verizon Wireless "Cell on Wheels" (COW) are fully functional, generator-powered mobile cell sites that enhance coverage and capacity in a given area. It can accommodate both voice and CDMA data services. Verizon really isn’t a scandal per se, but it definitely sheds light on the subject of how companies can “overlook” issues that appear small, but in all actuality are really big. Verizon however did make the wrong right, and is doing its due diligence to make sure that it doesn’t happen again. That is why they are the most reliable network. References:
Official website of Brett Favre. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.officialbrettfavre.com/bio/
Eggemeyer, C. (2010, October). Brett Favre scandal: did the Vikings lose more than a game on Monday night? Retrieved from http://bleacherreport.com/articles/489425-brett-favre-scandal-did-the-vikings-lose-more-than-a-game-on-monday-night
Schwartz, S. (2010, October 29). Largest refund in fcc history to be paid by verizon. Retrieved from http://blog.connectedplanetonline.com/unfiltered/2010/10/29/could-vzw-have-avoided-refund-scandal-with-due-diligence-or-a-better-billing-solution/

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