One justification for the veracity of the quote is the
simple truth that humans have been trying since before the Ancient Greeks to define
ethics. As centuries have passed, more and more versions of ethics and the subject's
implication for the way we live our lives have resulted. The difficulty in defining
ethics comes from the varying views of human nature. If a person believes in absolute
morality, that will affect his or her ethics (in business, medicine, relationships,
etc.). For example, if I believe that lying is always wrong and never an option, then I
will not "cover" for someone at work, and I will not call in sick when I'm not truly
sick. If, however, someone believes in relative morality, that will also affect that
person's ethical standards. That person might be willing to lie for a coworker because
his relationship with that coworker is more important that telling the truth to his
employer (that decision results from that person's ethics); similarly, that person might
call in sick when he is not sick if it means that he will be able to spend more time
with his partner or child, to further develop that important
relationship.
Because so many people have different
experiences and philosophies of life, ethics in most humans' eyes will never be
universal.
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