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In a morally-flexible environment, it's easy to confuse the two.

For example - Zynga selling offers (for credits) with very fine print that signs you up for paid services. And the fine print is so convoluted/tiny most people don't read it. Helping or hurting consumers?

- Facebook hiring a PR firm to highlight questionable privacy practices by Google. Helping users or hurting Google?

- Subprime mortgages. Helping or hurting homeowners?

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In a morally-flexible environment

You're assuming your conclusion. Punctiliously following convention doesn't make you good. It just safely ensconces you near the mean. Not a promising place for startup founders to reside.

Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes is naughty. He's not evil or even "morally-flexible".

Perhaps you should look to real business rather than comics for examples. It would be more convincing.

I think the rule is, "Write to your audience."

Dropbox lying about their security guarantees ....

The fact that they are a Y-combinator company makes this far and away the best example given.

Except that they didn't lie.

English isn't a computer program - there are many interpretations possible. I suspect that they didn't even see the other interpretation of their language around security until someone pointed it out to them.

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