Thoughts on Rules and Regulations....

Recently, I have been asked my opinion on the nature of rules and regulations as they apply to any number of different Sea Ranch issues such as fuel load management, view restoration, membership dues assessment, the DCEM and even the process of campaigning itself.

Rather than comment on each one individually, I'd like to share my general thoughts on rules and regulations, as I believe they can be applied to the specific concerns listed above.

I may take a while to get there, but I promise that I will.

As an ethics practitioner, I find that in dealing with organizations both large and small, the desire to establish an ethical culture is a strong one. However, it's never as easy as folks think, and it doesn't happen over night, but over time.

Most organizations have stated values, often in the form of a mission statement. That's a good start. However, talking a good game and playing one, are two entirely different propositions. Considering the following quotation:

“As you go forward in life . . . you will be confronted with questions every day that test your morals. The questions will get tougher and the consequences will become more severe. Think carefully, and for your sake, do the right thing, not the easy thing.”

Now consider the above quotation's attribution:

— Dennis Kozlowski, ex-CEO of Tyco, in a commencement speech at St. Anselm’s College two weeks before his resignation and indictment (New York Times, June 4, 2002)

This illustrates what can happen when a person's (or organization's) stated values are inconsistent with their operational values. In other words, they fail to "walk the talk."

To combat this rather unfortunate dynamic, an employee code of conduct is often added to the mission statement. This frequently is accompanied by an exhaustive set of rules and regulations outlining clearly what is expected, and what sanctions will be imposed if those expectations are not met. Outstanding!

However, here's where the "rubber meets the road," as it were. If these rules and regulations are not consistently and even handedly enforced, it creates 2 things which will pretty much guarantee failure with regard to establishing an ethical culture.

1) Failure to enforce a rule creates cynicism toward the rule itself. (People don't take it seriously. Think the 10 items or less check out line at the super market or the 65 mph speed limit on US 101.)

2) Failure to enforce a rule also creates cynicism toward that person or persons who have the moral/ethical responsibility to enforce the rule. (Think a parent who fails to enforce the "be in bed by 9 PM rule" or school teacher who fails to enforce the "no gum chewing in class rule.")

Ok. So, what's does that have to do with being a Sea Ranch board member? Well, I think it's pretty obvious really. Since there are enough rules and regulations on The Sea Ranch to keep the Supreme Court busy for 20 years, a board director must be willing to take on an enormous moral and ethical responsibility.

To clarify further, if the rules governing The Sea Ranch are to be meaningful, a board director must enforce and stand by them, even if it means damaging a relationship, being embarrassed or losing an election.

It has been said quite accurately, that principles are only meaningful if we're willing to stand by them when they become inconvenient. "Bravo!" I say.

One of the things most talked about during election season is a candidate's "character." Although I think it has become way too politicized, I view that as an important quality. Character has been defined as "ethics in action." I agree.

How we take the measure of person's character has much to do with our own personal beliefs and perspectives. That being the case, we will disagree from time to time with regard to a person's character. Such is the nature of legitimate debate in a democratic society.

However, I often call to mind the words of Dan Coats, a former senator from Indiana, as I think his thoughts on character seem to transcend our differences with regard to assessing a person's character:

"Character cannot be summoned at the moment of crisis if it has been squandered by years of compromise and rationalization. The only preparation for the heroic is the mundane. Habit is the daily battleground of character."

A final thought about rules, regulations and laws. Senator Sam Ervin who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee during the Watergate hearings, liked to describe himself as "just a poor country lawyer from North Carolina." That may have been true.

But, he was also much more. Sam Ervin graduated at the top of his law class at Harvard and was regarded as one of the preeminent scholars of his time with regard to Constitutional Law. In text books, the US Constitution is often described as "the law of the land." The law doesn't get any bigger than that.

And, it wasn't an accident that Senator Ervin was the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

So, when we're looking at laws (or rules & regulations) and the even handed and consistent application of them to solve our problems, we should consider what Sam Ervin said,

"The law is not self executing. The law will prevent some people from breaking it and will punish some of those who do. But, the law will not make good people. Only religion, character or ethics will do that."