Your initial reaction is probably short and simple: Of course, it still matters! And then you rightfully wonder why we even ask this question. Alright then, let’s delve into it and we have to start with the definition of integrity and its application. What is it?
The word integrity has actually more than one meaning. It is used in connection with nouns such honesty, principle, honor, virtue, morality, purity, righteousness, probity, rectitude, truthfulness, trustworthiness, incorruptibility, scrupulousness and reputability but it is also used describing unity, unification, cohesion, coherence, wholeness, soundness, completeness, character, fiber, and the state of being whole. That is quite a list of applications for a single nine-letter word.
Back to the title of this article: Does Integrity still matter? We are asking the question simply as a result of seeing what is and has been going on in America. On the surface at least, there appears to be an erosion of true integrity everywhere we look. We are generally too willing to excuse shortcomings for ourselves and others, it is a slow-moving yet steady decline in a value system that should be guiding us all and which we should adhere to at all times in a civilized country as we consider America to be. And yet, we seem to accept this trend willingly by saying: So what? Whether it is cheating in tests in school, making shortcuts in the workplace by coming a few minutes late, taking longer breaks and leaving slightly earlier to get a head start on traffic going home. Those are the little infractions that happen daily millions of times and we do not want to exclusively focus on them but elevate it to higher levels when integrity is obviously thrown out the window by corporations and specifically financial institutions.
In all seriousness, how could major banks and similar companies agree to relax or ignore long proven lending practices and approve mortgages for homeowners definitely NOT qualified to afford these homes and without an ability to make the monthly mortgage payments? The same holds true for other equally risky money borrowing schemes where people could finance their houses beyond the appraised market value in order to get cash for other investments or purchases (buying other properties etc). Let’s be realistic, why are there currently millions of homes in foreclosure across this country? The answer is crystal clear, people simply walked away from their homes when they could no longer make the payments and since many had no money invested as down payments, they really did not lose anything. There are actually many uncounted varieties of individual cases but in summation, there were enough of them that we are finding ourselves in the current bank bailout mode contributing heavily to the financial mess we are in. Loan officers did not do this on their own – this risky lending – they worked in accordance with directions from upper (corporate) management. Did the big bankers simply vacate adherence to any integrity? Was it their personal greed that drove them to do this (getting larger bonuses for greater lending amounts or other greed-driven reasons)?
The same holds true in politics. The individuals who get elected by voters should be held to the highest levels of integrity, after all, they represent us and have promised during campaigns to conduct themselves at such high levels. And it appears that the higher the office to which they were elected, the higher the degree of true integrity is promised. Yet, the sad reality is that they are no sooner sworn into office, all promises are thrown out the window and they do what they want to do or for all we know always planned on doing. We could write a book about all the politicians who acted this way including some of them whose corruption landed them in prison but we shall not. But what is exceptionally disappointing is the fact that President Barack Obama made more promises to voters than other candidates over a period of twenty months and yet he is no different than all the other elected officials. He promised very specific changes of transparency in government, the highest level of integrity for cabinet members and other administrative positions, the end of all earmarks in funding bills and responsible spending by the federal government and on and on.
But the reality is sadly totally the opposite: Since Barack Obama has been sworn in as President some nine weeks ago, he has signed nearly two trillion dollars worth of spending bills – called stimulus and other such things – and has proposed a 3.6 trillion dollar budget for fiscal year 2010, beginning this coming October. While he had promised that all bills would be posted on a government website for the American public to see for five days before he would sign the legislature, guess what, he signed the bills immediately! In other words: Screw that campaign promise on this one. And what are we to think that he wanted and got (approved) a person as Treasury Secretary who cheated on his taxes for four recent years? Imagine this reality, we have now in Timothy Geithner a tax cheat in charge of the Internal Revenue Service. Is this not similar to putting a convicted child molester in charge of a Day Care Center? Several other appointees withdrew their respective nominations when it became public knowledge that they had also cheated on their taxes in the past or had other legal problems.
So much for integrity and promises made – promises kept! And this at the highest level of our federal government. It is a truly very disappointing fact as this happens so quickly after this candidate for the highest office in the land demonstrates that his idea of integrity vastly deviates from the words meaning and definition. Common Sense University is extremely upset over this and can only wonder why these things are so generally accepted by the people of this great country. If we do not care any longer about upholding integrity, we are heading for genuinely bad times in America. Hopefully, you understand now why we asked the question in the title of this article.