A Daily Dilemma

I think that most people want to be considered ethical persons. Any critical self examination would seem to reveal that most of us haven’t even noticed that we faced a moral dilemma. We probably couldn’t even articulate what we are responsible for to be considered ethical persons. This means that often we do not even realize we are faced with an ethical situation; we move through our lives missing the moment and the opportunity. I can honestly say that I have lived through many moral dilemmas without the slightest knowledge of it. It took one clear and defining event to open the door to a different level of “moral knowing.” I lived my life under the misconception that ethical/unethical behavior, like justice, was clear and easy to see. Ethical dilemmas do not always have a right solution. Reasonable people can disagree on the solution or that there is even an ethical issue in the dilemma.
Barlow, Jordan, and Hendrix (2003) suggest a fundamental part of character is “moral knowing.” (p. 566) Moral knowing includes knowing when a situation is one which demands an ethical examination. Moral knowing is being able to rationally recognize the ethical issues involved in your decision or action; it is the acknowledgment of dilemma. If you can consistently do this, then, you have achieved the first step to being an ethical person. This “knowing” is only the first step, however. The next step would be to move beyond the knowing and actually do something about it. Now you have to be able to define your purpose, know your moral principles, and be able to maturely take action and appropriately predict the consequences of the action.
http://papers.peterstinson.com/2005_07_01_archive.html