For the bright and ambitious

My colleague, John L. Tomkinson, brought to my attention this letter published in today's issue of the International Herald Tribune:

Lost MBAs

The current financial debacle may herald the end of an era epitomized by three letters: MBA. The mad stampede among talented students and young entrepreneurs to earn an MBA from Harvard, Stanford and Wharton, and thereby get on the fast track to a job on Wall Street, has drained the pool of talent for other more essential but less lucrative professions. What a tragic waste when all that accumulated talent, energy and learning only produces a giant, burst bubble in the biggest casino in the world.

Clearly something must be missing in the magic mix that is being imparted on these bright young titans of the universe if they can throw themselves into such a selfish, unproductive world of financial brinkmanship on such a massive scale.

Do ethics or historical and social perspective have any place in their curriculum? We need to ask those charged with teaching our brightest and best whether the values they teach need to be rethought.

Robert Nadler, London

Difficult to disagree, isn't it?