To be an effective leader, a public official must maintain the highest ethical and moral standards. ================================================================== A leader is effective only if he can make policies into practice. Under this definition, I agree to the extent that with high ethical standards, it may be easier for a leader to execute his policies effectively. However, being a great leader without high moral values is still possible, as long as one can achieve his goal. Take my nation, Taiwan, for example. Decades ago people in Taiwan had an autarchical government. Though everyone knew that many public servants and officials are corruptible, most of the important national fundamental constructions were finished then. Up to now, the influences of these constructions are still explicit. Besides, there were not so many crimes and violence affairs as now. These are the evidences supporting the idea that one could be a great leader without being morally respected. Turing to the recent presidential competition, the poll showed that people concern more about economy issues than the moral issues of the candidates. A public official has the responsibility to make the nation move forward, while obeying the moral rules is the responsibility of the public. Compared with a moderate gentleman who is not capable of public affairs, a man with the management ability is a better candidate of an efficient leader. To me, a higher moral standard is just a way to gain voters’ trust. A politician without scandals is more likely to win the election than a corruptionist. Though having good morals does not necessary imply that he’s a great leader, people tend to confide the power to him. They believe that a man with ethical merit is the right leader to lead the country in the right direction. For any leader, winning the trust of his people is essential for enforcing his leadership. Virtuous leaders are thus advantageous. On balance, moral virtue is neither a sufficient nor a necessary condition to be an efficient leader. At most, I agree that a highly virtuous person is more likely to be an efficient leader. On the contrary, one could govern a country efficiently without being moral. 这是我上铼心补习班，有个写作老师出的题目，应该是GRE的。 在这里献丑，希望可以和大家讨论 :) ※ 编辑: philJamy 来自: 210.243.27.1 (06/13 14:14)