Michael Plant wrote:
> Ourania ink.net11/21/05
>
>
>
>>Mike Petro wrote:
>>
>>>On Sun, 20 Nov 2005 13:24:05 GMT, "Alex Chaihorsky"
> wrote:
>>
>>
>>>Sasha speaks the truth here. Alas they do NOT have a solid code of
>>>ethics yet in China regarding "truth in advertising" and many such
>>>forgeries exist.
>>
>>They do indeed have a solid code of ethics in China regarding
>>''truth in advertising," Mike. It just doesn't happen to match
>>yours. :-)
>
>
>
> Would you kindly elaborate upon it.
> Thanks.

Actually, I was just pointing out the cultural chauvinism
implicit in Mike's comment. What to Mike/us qualifies as
"ethical" may not be even be an "ethical" consideration at all in
another culture, or may even be deemed unethical or patently
ridiculous in terms of that culture's standard business practices.

But in any case, the labeling and advertising constraints in the
U.S. are the results of legislation and most definitely not the
result of ethics. Check out the label on a can of Campbell's
SpaghettiOs, for example. It emphasizes how healthy that junk is
for children (because vitamins are added). And Campbell's
advertising for that product claims, "Now you can feel good about
giving your kids what they are asking for!" because in addition
to being delicious (!), it's so healthful and will help them
grow. Then look at the ingredients. One small can contains over
one gram of sodium! On top of it, the whole salty mess is just a
glob of white flour and cheese and sugar. That's truth in
labeling and truth in advertising? No. That's ethical? No.
That's legal? Yes.

Or look at an ad from GM that says you can buy a car at x% over
invoice, or at employee discount prices, or whatever. Naturally,
the ad doesn't mention the dealer pack, the "manufacturer's
fees," etc., that result in the selling price being considerably
(and invariably) much higher than what was advertised:
unethical, untrue, and legal.

Our hubristic assertions about U.S. consumer protection (not to
mention U.S. business "ethics") are misinformed. Our notion that
other cultures' "ethics" are inferior to ours is, well, a
misguided assessment, at best.