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! War & Peace !, Jus In Bello, Jus Ad Bellum, Jus Post Bellum, 1)…
! War & Peace !
weaknesses of pacifism
logical inconsistency - killing is so wring, i will not do anything to stop killing
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fighting is morally virtuous, not evil in itself (reject deontological view) "greater love has no man than he who gives up his life for another" (Jesus)
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too idealistic & not pragmatic in a fallen world. Kant - pessimistic about human nature: war is permissible in our world
relative pacifism - gives no firm guidance on when violence might be necessary & no rules/conditions to govern your (violent) response. its an inadequate version of JWT
Bonhoeffer - its not moral to so nothing to stop evil, even if its at the expense of you own ideals. "let God judge me" (assassinate Hitler)
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its more morally evil to allow innocent, weak & vulnerable to be killed or oppressed & not defend them
Douglas Lackey - pacifism = marginal position among philosophers based on "eccentricities of faith... not sound philosophical reasoning"
crit - just cause something is popular doesn't mean its right, so unpopular doesn't mean its wrong
absolute pacifism could make countries an easy target for attack. Anscombe - she talks about the 'evil of pacifism', which denies the right to self defence
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strengths of pacifism
encourages higher virtues of self sacrifice, patience, tolerance & love
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demonstrated its effectiveness - active pacifism brought about social change without (much) bloodshed
different types allow for some flexibility. (relative pacifism accepts violence in extreme circumstances, e.g. stop nuclear war, genocide)
available to all, don't need to be religious
strengths of JWT
defines the conditions under which violence may be used & it combines the wisdom of philosophers over many years
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teleological view of war
leads to huge suffering, bereavement, metal health, refugees, physical health & disability
serious economic problems, debt, arms race, poverty, famine
breakdown if trust & communication, leads to more division, war, terrorism
e.g. WWII --> Cold War, Iraq --> Taliban, Afghanistan, Syrian Wars
environmental destruction, espec if chemical weapons used; nuclear war = total destruction
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biblical support
Jesus taught his followers about a new spiritual KoG: peace, love, etc
believers must be set apart from the killing of 'this world' (place of sin, violence, etc) by adopting a new ethic of Agape: 'turn the other cheek', 'love they enemies' 'those who live by the sword, die by the sword'
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absolute pacifism is a minority view in Christianity, but a few sects still follow this, taking their e.g. from Jesus who never resisted his persecutors
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Another justification for pacifism is the belief that the kingdom of God is set apart from the world. The world will continue in sin of all kinds, including war, but those who truly belong to the kingdom of God are called to put their total trust in God & to obey all of Jesus' teachings, including His teachings against violence.
Many Christian pacifists see nonviolence as the only way to alleviate the vicious cycles of oppression, hatred, war and revenge that have dominated human history.
weaknesses of JWT
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is unrealistic, as the strong & powerful will always win
terrorism demands a different approach, as they take no notice of the rules
JWT says that violence is permitted, but morality must always oppose deliberate violence
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types of pacifism:
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Relative pacifism
violence is always wrong, but may be acceptable in extreme circumstances
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Nuclear pacifism
Since WW2, morally wrong for nations to create/hold nuclear weapons
Pacifist views
1) Martin Luther King
- was a christian - turn the other cheek, etc
- advocated for non-violent protests
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- believed love was more powerful than hate & violence
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“I have decided to stick with love, as hate is too great a burden to bear”
2) Ghandi
- gave peace talks & lead peaceful protests
- followed principle of ahimsa (non-violence)
- refused to use any force even when attacked
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Christianity & JWT
Christian ideal is total elimination of war and brotherly love among all people. However, in this imperfect world, war may be forced on those who do not desire it.
Augustine of Hippo & Aquinas are primarily responsible for formulating the theory of the Just War which has remained the majority Christian approach to war today
Bible & war
O.T.
early O.T. times war was often seen as a holy war, a conflict initiated and led by God
war was declared by God, Himself & every facet of war had religious significance. Sacrificial rites were performed to ensure God's continued support
The sacred arc of the covenant, symbolizing the presence of God, was often taken into battle
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Critics sometimes claim that holy war is encouraged in the Old Testament. However, the nation of Israel was given a mandate only to conquer the land of Canaan
specific specific place, time, and people, not an endorsement of religious warfare. Nor was the conquest of Canaan made on the basis of religion
God repeatedly stated that this conquest was due to the wickedness of the Canaanites, not the merit of Israel
Historically, this is exactly how the nation of Israel interpreted these commands. No attempts were made to conquer other lands or to expand that territory through combat, rather battles were fought to ensure the borders of the new Promised Land remained intact
Later in Israel's history, the prophets began to see the terror of war as God's justice against his people for their sins, and the glory of war faded Israel began to look to the day when the endless cycle of war would be broken
N.T.
in N.T. war is universally seen as evil and Jesus emphasized peace instead. He advised his followers to avoid retaliation and revenge and to extend love even to your enemies.
If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
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Despite the evil of war, Jesus said it is inevitable that wars will continue until He returns &He did not oppose earthly governments or their right to maintain armies - other N.T. passages accept necessity of armies
Christians are strictly forbidden from using violence in an attempt to spread their faith. Christ directly told His disciples not to use violence to further His ministry. He lived out a philosophy of peacemaking and taught others to do the same
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Jus In Bello
general weaknesses:
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All very idealistic, not realistic to the conditions of war in reality.
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4) No war crimes: rape, genocide, child soldiers, extermination camps – methods which are evil in themselves (deontological).
weakness - Individual insubordinate soldiers, warfare is brutal, violent, its very difficult to control all soldiers. If the enemy uses these tactics hard to resist and eye for an eye
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Jus Ad Bellum
6) Last Resort
- criteria supported by Hugo Grotius
- The war must be the last resort, you should only go to war if all diplomatic means have been tried & failed
- no war is justified if there’s any chance of resolution through means such as discussion, negotiation, employment of economic sanctions or other means short of military action
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weaknesses:
can be a risky policy – e.g. before WW2 Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement allowed Germany to build up her army
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1) Just Cause
- Augustine – “…Those who are attacked, should be attacked because they deserve it on account of some fault…”
- most important - there must be a good & moral reason for going to war – self defence & defence of others.
- seems to involve self defence & defence of others
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weaknesses:
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Also, its vague & doesn't explain what kind of injustice makes it just – can be warped
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3) Right Intention
- Aquinas wrote that war had to be fought with the right intention. For the-”advancement of good, or the avoidance of evil”
- Intentions must be virtuous - pursuit of peace and reconciliation, including avoiding unnecessarily destructive acts or unreasonable conditions
- principle of Right Intention is closely related to the principle of Just cause (arguably is its subjective element).
weaknesses:
subjective - can be misguided, some do not realise that they are doing great wrongs that think they are doing good
Can mask bad intentions with good ones – oil issues in first Iraq war – said it was to defend sovereign nation when was actually to protect oil supply & War on Terror – American after 911, for revenge and justice more than safety (American vanity).
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2) Legitimate Authority
- Aquinas wrote the just authority meant that war could only be started by a legitimate authority, e.g. UN
Strengths:
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there can be no private armies who can start war & an incompetent government doesn't have authority to start one. e.g. terrorists cant start wars
weaknesses:
authorities can clash, countries the UN all have differing opinions on whether they should go to war – which is the true legitimate authority
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Terrorists do not care about right authority and other conditions they declare wat even if they do not have the authority to.
4) Likelihood of Success
- focused on by Hugo Grotius
- Should not go to war if you think you will lose terribly
weaknesses:
what is ‘success’? – victory, crushing your enemy, securing the land, gaining control of natural resources, fighting with courage…
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5) Proportionality
- a relational principle. It is often said that punishment should be proportionate to the crime.
- You should not wage a war that causes substantially more suffering & destruction than the actual wrong being done by the enemy, excessive violence, death & damage should be avoided.
e.g. it would have been unacceptable for the UK to have launched a nuclear strike on Argentina in response to their invasion of the Falkland Islands
weaknesses:
Pacifists – all war is out of proportion and excessive, this condition cannot be justified.
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Jus Post Bellum
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weaknesses:
Extremely difficult – it took 10 years for Iraq to achieve some stability after the second Iraq war – still economic & security problems
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1) Ancient Greeks
2) St Augustine
- Church was Christian (pacifist) at this time & needed way to justify war: need a just cause (Justum Bellum), O.T. = commanded by God to establish & protect Holy Land, Justice = war should avenge wrongs , or restore what's been unjustly seized
3) Thomas Aquinas
- adds new conditions for a just war: 1- right authority 2- right intention (must restore peace & justice) 3- last resort
4) Hugo Grotius
- revised JWT - all about INJUSTICE, just cause if: 1- rights of citizens are violated 2- victim nation can punish enemy responsible 3- prevention of injustice is a just cause
links to NML - universal moral code that unites humanity - therefore right to defend citizens of another state, e.g. WWI
- Aristotle - the telos of war was peace & justified as self-defence, was an opportunity to practice the virtue of leadership & a way to get 'natural slaves'
aristoltole - “we make that we may live in peace”