Tap 4: "The Myth of Ethics"

 Underneath is an excerpt from my upcoming book, "The Myth of Ethics." It is still in its draft form, but it is coming along.

Plato asserts that the woes besetting Athens stem from the flawed education of its youth, influenced by the values propagated by Homeric heroes. Death, murder, thievery, enslavement, and sexual assault pervade the Iliad, shaping the minds of the young. Thus, Plato advocates for censorship and superior educational modalities. "The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future in life," he wrote. This perspective should not seem foreign even to our contemporary sensibilities. In many societies today, explicit content and violent imagery are restricted for younger audiences. Plato's ideal for child education lies in the imparting of wisdom and ethical virtues—elements we curiously find in modern media like Mr. Rogers and Sesame Street. Kindness reigns supreme in these programs, embodying Platonic values. However, ancient Athens lacked such educational vehicles, compelling Plato to fill this void through his dialogues and his Academy.

Nevertheless, a significant element of kindness—equality—is conspicuously absent in Plato's era. This more equitable thinking does not emerge until a certain carpenter begins to preach in Jerusalem. Yet, Plato does harbor nascent ideas of equality; in The Republic, he advocates for the education of women on par with men. "If women are expected to do the same work as men, we must teach them the same things," he states. This was a radical stance in an age when women were largely regarded as property. For his time, Plato was incredibly progressive. 

Now, why is all this important? Whenever I deal with certain types of people in the workplace, I often ask myself what education they had growing up. What did their parents teach them? What books and TV shows did they experience? What games did they play with other kids? What did the social milieu provide for them in the form of context and philosophical wisdom? Then, I ask myself: What are the company values? Does the company hire people with those values in mind? Are those values part of the recruitment team's checklist? Did the audio director ask questions that sift the good from the bad? In most cases, I am told that experience is more important than those values. Why? The sad answer is that, for most companies, values are marketing writ large. They are not part of hiring and serve only to present the company with a gleaming coat of virtues and goals. As a result, the decision to prioritize experience means that a company is often prey to high-performing, toxic workers. This leads to violence toward equality because experience becomes the dividing line. We have few women and marginalized people in the video game industry largely because it originated with elements of racism and misogyny. Now, in the current age of the industry, we call for work experience that only serves to perpetuate that racism and misogyny—even in companies that profess inclusive values, for they are blind to this dividing line. I term this "The Supremacy Line," as it aims to destroy communities. It is a device employed by the maliciously educated to convince the uneducated of a recondite virtue that serves the company's and its workers' best interests. These are the sophists of our age, capable of persuasive arguments because they are equipped with statistics that are misconstrued to serve the malevolent engine of self-gain.

To resolve this issue, while CEOs and audio directors may have little influence over the upbringing of others, they wield considerable control over workplace culture. "The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself," proclaimed Plato, implying that management should first master their own behavior, meaning that those who desire to govern others are not fit to do so until they can govern themselves. Steps must be taken to weed out toxic individuals during the hiring process, even if it means choosing a less experienced candidate. Opportunities should be created for those lacking experience to gain it, potentially favoring a modest one-page CV over an extensive five-page one. Terminate the employment of those who are toxic yet high-performing. Provide educational resources not just in specific fields, but also in ethical and philosophical domains. They can take the shape of inviting people to speak, books, and other forms of media. If these measures are executed diligently, the Supremacy Line may finally be eradicated, engendering safer and more equitable work environments.

As Marcus Aurelius wisely noted, "The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts." Thus, the well-being of an organization hinges on the collective ethos of its workforce. One individual's tragedy can spell the end of an era for a company, underscoring the paramount importance for those in power to act responsibly.

That was the excerpt. I hope to have the book done by the end of the year and published at the start of the next.

These were my thoughts.