Katz's The Ethics of Expediency

In his article, Katz discussed the ethics of expediency and "technological expediency" where those engaged in technical communication are only concerned with the end and not how they have arrived at that end. Ethics has been a topic we have discussed throughout the semester, especially when referring to good and bad rhetoric, noble and base rhetoric. Katz is mainly talking about deliberative rhetoric, or rhetoric dealing with action to be taken in the future.

Katz uses Nazi Germany as an example of this expediency, more specifically he analyzes a technical document written by Just during the war. In the document, Just outlines how to exterminate Jews more effectively. The document, from a technical writing standpoint, is a perfectly written document. It is clear and concise, written without emotion. And it does serve its purpose. The question becomes, how could something like this actually happen? How do ethical considerations not become part of the equation?

For Katz, the Germans did not see what they were doing as wrong. Ethics are defined by the culture and Germany during this time thought they were doing the right thing. It seems to be no different than radical Islams who plot for the death and downfall of Western culture. Their culture has allowed for this to become ethical and the norm.

I do not see how we can go about fixing this ethical dilemma. I mean, we can ensure that we look at the big picture when writing a technical document. We can look at who is going to be effected by or writing and plan accordingly. But as far as combatting this problem beyond our personal experiences, it seems unlikely. Culture is so embedded that it seems like an impossible task to undertake.