Is there a "right" way to do things?

Our recent readings and class discussion have me pondering the notion of the "right" way to do things.  Of course, few things can be classified as "right" or "wrong";  in most aspects of life we live in the blurred gray areas, and qualitative research certainly finds itself in the category of gray for me!  The readings about transcription methods, if nothing else, can attest to this.  There are so many opinions about the "right" way to transcribe, from straight transcription, to pragmatic, to Jeffersonian, and all of the arguments have valid points.  After taking the discourse analysis class last fall, I find that I can no longer look at transcription in the same way, and the readings simply helped solidify my thoughts on the topic.  I see the transcription process as analysis, and while I will not pretend that Jeffersonian transcription is 'fun' it is certainly enlightening!  Regardless of whether or not Jeffersonian notations are used or even necessary, though, one constant, or "right" way for me to do transcriptions is to do them myself!  Yes, it is time consuming and somewhat tedious, but I suppose I'm amazed at how many researchers simply view this as meaningless chore, just a means to an end, and do not see the value in doing it themselves.  Perhaps, a lot of my opinions on this matter stem from the control freak side of me, but nevertheless, I just feel it is important for me to deal with the data, not someone else.

The other notion of what is "right" or "wrong" that came up during our class discussion was the ethical dilemma of using data that is technically open to anyone, such as open access discussion threads, etc.  I was really intrigued with the cut and dry opinions from IRB, as opposed to the inner struggle of personal views on the ethics of the situation.  Is it okay to go ahead and use data just because we don't consider the population to be vulnerable?  I don't know, and in fact, I don't believe there is a "right" or "wrong", which lands us right back into the world of gray!  I suppose we have no choice but to accept this gray existence and strive to conduct ourselves in a manner that we can live with, knowing that some others will not agree with our choices.