1. Just War or the Ethics of War
Clausewitz said “war is a continuation of politics by other means”
war can also create policy
war is a brutal and ugly enterprise
central to human history and social change
war and its threat continue to be forces in our lives
The Rules of War

2. War forces us to confront important questions
Is war always wrong?
Might there be situations when it can be a justified, or even a smart, thing to do?
Will war always be part of human experience, or can we do something to make it disappear?
Is war an outcome of unchangeable human nature or, rather, of changeable social practice?
Is there a fair and sensible way to wage war, or is it all hopeless, barbaric slaughter?
When wars end, how should post-war reconstruction proceed, and who should be in charge?
- What are our rights, and responsibilities, when our own society makes the move to go to war?

3. Realism skeptical about applying morality or justice to war
morality is wishful thinking
power and national security motivate states during wartime
country should tend to its vital interests in security, influence over others, and economic growth
war is an inevitable part of an chaotic world system
Machiavellian perspective – do what is necessary to stay in power
Niccolò Machiavelli
Some realists claim that there could be rules – no genocide, harm to non-combatants, etc

4. Pacifism morality can be applied to international concepts
objects to the mass killing for any reason, which is part and parcel of the wartime experience
therefore war should never be undertaken because it is always wrong
“What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?”
- Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi

5. Is Pacifism naïve or possible?
“For make no mistake: evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler’s armies. Negotiations cannot convince al Qaeda’s leaders to lay down their arms. To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism - it is a recognition of history; the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.”
- Barack Obama
Is Pacifism naïve or possible?
President Barack Obama accepting the Nobel peace Prize, December 10, 2009

6. Just War Theory
Just War is most influential school of thinking in the ethics of war
early thinkers include Aristotle, Cicero, Augustine, Hugo Grotius, etc.
states can have moral justification for resorting to armed force at times
many of the rules developed by the Just War tradition have since been codified into international laws governing armed conflict The United Nations Charter and The Hague and Geneva Conventions

7. Three parts of Just War Theory
1. jus ad bellum - concerns the justice of resorting to war in the first place
2. jus in bello - concerns the justice of conduct within war once it has begun
3. jus post bellum - concerns the justice of peace agreements and the termination phase of war

8. rules before going to war
jus ad bellum
rules before going to war
six requirements to make war just before undertaking
JUST CAUSE - state may launch a war only for the right reason  presupposes the idea that states have rights
self-defense from external attack
defense of others from such attack
protection of innocents from brutal, aggressive regimes
punishment for a grievous wrongdoing which remains uncorrected

9. jus ad bellum, cont.
rights of states - all legitimate states have rights to political sovereignty and territorial integrity
legitimate state is recognized by its own people and the international community
legitimate state avoids violating the rights of other legitimate states
legitimate state satisfies the human rights of their own citizens
states failing any of these criteria have no right to govern or to go to war
- allow legitimate states to intervene on behalf of victims

10. Does this right allow for pre-emptive war?
jus ad bellum, cont.
Does this right allow for pre-emptive war?
Or is this aggression?
The bombing of Baghdad

11. jus ad bellum, cont.
2. RIGHT INTENTION - state must intend to fight the war only for the sake of its just cause
ulterior motives, such as a power or land grab, revenge, or ethnic hatred are not legitimate
if another intention crowds in, moral corruption sets in
- international law does not include this rule because it is difficult to prove intent

12. jus ad bellum, cont. 3. PROPER AUTHORITY AND PUBLIC DECLARATION
decision must be made by the appropriate authorities and made public (to both citizens and enemies)
4. LAST RESORT
- state may resort to war only if it has exhausted all peaceful alternatives to resolving the conflict, in particular diplomatic negotiation

13. jus ad bellum, cont. 5. PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS
state may not go to war if there will be no measurable change
block mass violence which is going to be futile
International law does not include this rule because it is biased against small states
6. PROPORTIONALITY
- must weigh universal good v. universal bad  benefits must outweigh the costs
Could the United States have predicted the emerging power of Iran after the fall of Saddam Hussein?

14. International laws do not hold the same standard
jus ad bellum, cont.
Just war theory insists all six criteria must each be fulfilled for a declaration of war to be justified or legitimate
International laws do not hold the same standard
President Franklin Roosevelt signing declaration of war against Germany and Japan