They Learned it from Justice Thomas

The U.S. House of Representatives (note to foreign readers: this is where the really conservative Americans go to learn to run the government) has taken the smart path out of its past few years of ethics scandals, which, after all, only involved marginal political figures like Majority Leader Tom DeLay. Nothing drastic planned, just a simple reform intended to prevent America from hearing over and over again about corruption in the House. Ethics classes? No. Try "new rules."

The proposal being circulated among House Republicans would end a general rule against any behavior that might bring "discredit" on the chamber, according to House Republican and Democratic leadership aides. House members would be held to a narrower standard of behavior in keeping with the law, the House's rules and its ethics guidelines.

Don't ask. Don't tell.

Medical Journal Editors Sin Too

For years the World Association of Medical Editors' Ethics Committee has produced rules about what sort of things editors should and should not do. This week, the Committee on Publication Ethics, a British Medical Journal-run publication ethics group, launched its own code for ethical conduct. British Medical Journal today reviews the new code and what it might mean. The code deals with lots of things but what really matters is its focus on conflict of interest.