The Goldman-Sachs hearings are stirring up new debates, and old ideologies, concerning what businesses do.  In an op-ed in today's Boston Globe, columnist Joan Vennochi puts much of the blame for the financial shenanigans on the public sector, arguing that "The private sector’s only legal responsibility is to make itself rich within the law of the land."

I beg to differ. The American Law Institute's "Principles of Corporate Governance" state that "Corporate officials are not less morally obliged than any other citizens to take ethical considerations into account." Making profits through normal business activities, such as running a service that brings lenders and borrowers together, is expected and encouraged. But pretending to provide such a service, while actually promoting defective financial products and wagering on their failure? That is simply is not normal or expected business behavior.

Why do we set our ethical expectations for business so low, as this columnist does? We may then get no better than we expect.

(The op-ed can be found at http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2010/04/29/washington_plays_wall_streets_games/)