|
Tuesday, October 25, 1994
Michael Morrow-FoxMr. Morrow-Fox focused his remarks on the abuse of the drug, alcohol. Through a series of slides, he demonstrated various ways in which our children are "taught" that alcohol consumption is not only harmless but also stylish and an important aspect or our culture. He defined abuse as having 4 or more drinks per evening, or more than 1 per hour, or any illicit drug use. We have abusers in our schools, our worship houses, and our places of employment. 86% of alcohol abusers are employed. The costs both in dollars and in human suffering are enormous. General costs of alcohol abuse are (1) total cost of medical, illness, deaths, and special conditions of 98.6 billion dollars; (2) deaths of 1000,000 people each year, 20,000 in car crashes; (3) health care system costs of 10.5 billion dollars each year; and (4) involvement in violent crime: murder-54%, manslaughter-68%, rape/sexual assault-52%, robbery-48%, assault-62%, burglary-44%. Alcohol abuse in the US is at least ten times greater than any other drug problem; 300 people die each day due to alcohol abuse related problems; 9 out of 10 rapes on college campuses involve alcohol, according to Morrow-Fox. He stated that our college-age children are not able to differentiate between the right and wrong of alcohol use.
Rev. Nicely said that 15 years ago the inability to differentiate what is normal, responsible drinking was a symptom of an addictive family. Today this appears to be a characteristic of our culture. Congregations generally fall on a continuum where at one extreme no pain is acknowledged and all is pleasant and at the other extreme all the congregation does is suffer. In order to be responsive to and part of the solution for alcohol and other drug abusers, a congregation needs to acknowledge human pain, welcome suffering, and provide support for healthy growth and recovery. He stated that this can be transferred to a business setting by creating a climate where the vulnerability of human life is acknowledged, suffering is welcome, and help is available.
Ms. Spence discussed the ethical obligations for the 90's. A 30 second TV spot which is aired to reach the most likely responsive audience can actually move public opinion by 27%, she said. The power of the media, especially television, is awesome. Spence believes that her industry must exercise ethically responsible self-regulation. The ethical responsibility starts with each one of us being part of the solution.
Discussion comments and questions addressed the culpability of the media and its efforts to counteract its image of irresponsibility, employer coverage of treatment costs, and random drug testing in business.
 
 Council for Ethics in Economics
Website designed and maintained by
|
CINErgy Media Communication