Facial Discrimination

Who are the major players in the article?

The major players are Ben & Jerry's and Unilever

B. Identify the basic moral or ethical issue expressed in the article. Be definitive in your explanation.

The moral and ethical issue in this article relates to big firms acquiring smaller firms. In this case, Unilever acquired Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. It is not exactly an "issue" anymore, because issue implies there is some solution. Unilever has already acquired Ben & Jerry's. There are people that are unhappy about this, but it has already been done. This article focuses on the potential positive and negative results of this acquisition.

C. What makes it an ethical or moral issue?

Bigger firms acquiring smaller firms can be an ethical issue. Smaller firms seem to have a different, more down to earth culture than bigger international firms. Ben & Jerry's is a good example of a smaller company with a hometown feel. They did many things for the environment and their community. People worried that the fun, community oriented Ben & Jerry's would start focusing more on profits and less on philanthropic efforts once acquired by Unilever. Stockholders may be in trouble because Ben & Jerry's unique small town hippie appearance, that many people have come to love, is disappearing. This is could create a decrease in stock prices.

D. What is your personal position on this issue?

I disagree with Ben & Jerry's decision to sell their company to Unilever. They built the company from the ground up, and did a lot of wonderful things for the community. They made a large amount of money themselves, and seem like they enjoyed what they did. They, as well as the community, felt good about their business. At one point, they actually slowed growth of the business on purpose in order to keep a small company relationship with employees. I do not understand why they would go though so much effort to create such a wonderful work environment and really a wonderful generous, loved company, just to hand it over to a group of people that are, like most businesses, focused primarily on making money. This is similar to having a child and giving it the best education possible all the way through high school, and then sending it to the worst raked college. It is wasted effort. Ben and Jerry seem unhappy with the way their company is now handled by Unilever. I am not sure what they expected.

E. Why have you chosen this particular position?

I understand that, for most people, having a business