Tom Paul owns a large construction company. He is wondering which expenses can be deducted and which are not allowed. The overall goal is to reduce his tax liability. Below are facts listed from his recent business activity:

• He just bought two new dump trucks that will be used fully for his construction business and one new pick-up truck that he will use at each construction site but also acts as his personal vehicle
• Similarly, he just bought new parts to improve the useful life of one of his old dump trucks and additionally purchased short-lived parts to fix one of his jackhammers
• Tom also just filled in potholes that were in the road that led to his business headquarters because they were causing damage to the wheels of his trucks
• Tom had one of his employees get injured last year on the job and is currently paying sick leave for that individual
• Lastly, Tom is paying for advertising in a newspaper to see if he can gain some additional business in the residential home industry (and has been unsuccessful in acquiring contracts) because, as of right now, Billy works almost exclusively in the commercial real estate industry

In all these situations, Tom is unsure whether he can deduct these expenses from his business tax return. Furthermore, some situations listed above may be allowed, but are they ethical in nature? Why, explain.