Ethics Treatment

There's a book out called the Lucifer Effect that I notice when reading CityEthics.org. The jist of the blog was that the book talked about treating ethics as disease prevention rather then disease treatment.
Another words, just treating the individual's problem fails to cleanup the organization. The culture of the organization provides the opportunities for choosing "to" or "not to" act ethically.
So, when the Council President removes himself from an issue with a possible conflict that has been ignored for years - it has the potential to send a message to other members that there is a cultural expectation. I know the cynic will say that it was done to avoid a hard decision, but I like to believe that there was a higher motive.