Rushworth M. Kidder's How Good People Make Tough Choices

Leaders have often been placed on a high pedestal, where individuals below them see nothing but the power and influence they possess.Thus, seeing this obvious prosperity, they strive to occupy that same level of control to reap the rewards, often forgetting the responsibility and struggles that occur as a leader. Leaders often encounter many difficult situations which can include ethical temptations or even more problematic; they can evolve into ethical dilemmas. Ethical dilemmas, according to Rushworth M. Kidder’s How Good People Make Tough Choices, pertain to the idea that in some situations, the choice between right and wrong may not be relevant, instead, individuals may be forced to choose between two “right” choices. This idea of an ethical
The leader of the aid agency works with refugees who, through necessity, fled their homes for protection and desperately attempted to seek refuge from the violence and brutality they were forced to endure. While residing in the camp, the water became contaminated with a parasite that damaged the cornea in the eye, rendering several of the refugees blind. However, despite the destruction the parasite-induced, the refugees’ health remained intact. The head of the agency, whose primary mission related to providing for the health of the refugees, connected the director of Doctors without Borders to see if there was anything that could be done to salvage the eye and hopefully restore their eyesight. Unfortunately, the aid agency regretfully stated that although they could provide doctors to facilitate the operation, sending corneas to Africa would be impossible. After this discussion, the conversation regarding the corneas halted as there was nothing that could be done until the director of Doctors without Borders called and disclosed that a Chinese aid agency currently possessed the coronas that could enable the refugees to see and would be willing to barter them for medical supplies. The announcement seemed somewhat implausible, and the disbelief from the proclamation forced the leader to question the source of the corneas. The director stated that a Chinese businessman donated the corneas and that he had procured them from a middleman who acquired body parts from prison wardens who executed prisoners. However, due to the economic gain the prison warders attained, the prison wardens became corrupt and self-indulgent, executing prisoners for personal gain rather a crime worthy of capital punishment. Considering the origins of the corneas, the leader of the humanitarian agency mentioned his hesitancy in accepting the corneas, but the director forced him to choose,