Auditing Moral Hazards for the Post-Global Financial Crisis (GFC) Leadership

There is no surprise that the list of economic issues that have moral implications is very long, encompassing many aspects, and some are hotly debated in the media. Financial crisis and executive remuneration is under intense scrutiny. That economic decisions involve morality and that the two cannot be easily separated was clear to Adam Smith (1776 [1980], 1759 [2002]), who held that value is inextricably intertwined in socioeconomic life. Value is also intertwined within science and, hence, all non-trivial judgments of fact always presuppose some a priori judgment of value (Davis, 1994), whether explicitly acknowledged or not. No empirical investigation and scientific methodology are able to adequately address questions of value governing human action; they are only able to produce probable findings, not ultimate truths (Davis, 1994). Issues of value can best be addressed to some extent using philosophical tools and political processes within a specific context. It is philosophical inquiry into the moral value of human conduct, the rules that govern such conduct, and an awareness of issues within society that have critical moral importance.