What makes something ethical or unethical and how do you know if something is right or wrong?

Since you
have placed this under , I will answer it in the context of business ethics.  It is, in all
cases, very hard to put forth a universal criterion that tells us what is right or wrong in all
situations.  Therefore, this is a very tough question to answer.

I would
argue that, in the area of business, an action is right or ethical if there is no real
likelihood that it will harm innocent people.  There are two parts to this criterion, both of
which must be explained. 

First, I say that ethical actions should not harm
innocent people.  I say this because, in...