Ethics in Politics: Then and Now

By: Jebamalai Vinanchiarachi

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Synopsis: The evolution of economic thought could be traced to the writings of Plato and Aristotle who treated Economics as part of Ethics and Politics centuries ago, calling it political economy. Those two masters of ancient economic thought are our contemporaries as their thoughts are indispensable to modern economic analysis of emerging issues and options. Today, we talk a great deal about ethics in business practice. The approach has its ancestors in previous centuries. The way political factors play a key role in economic policy pronouncements bear testimony to the convictions its ancestors had when they called Economics as Political Economy. It is in the context of the changed perceptions of old thoughts, I furnish my reflections on Politics without Ethics. Adam Smith, the Father of Economics, should not have separated Economics from Politics and Ethics, with a view to giving an independent status to the social science Economics. Perhaps, had Economics remained as Political Economy governed by ethical norms, politicians would not have treated Politics as an effective means to become rich.