Against the Theory of the Just War

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Against the Theory of the Just War

Some people argue that the Just War doctrine is inherently immoral, while others suggest that there is no place for ethics in war. Still others argue that the doctrine doesn't apply in the conditions of modern conflicts.

Here are some of the arguments that have been put forward:

• all war is unjust and has no place in any ethical theory
  • morality must always oppose deliberate violence
  • just war ideas tend to make violence OK, rather than restrain it
• war so disrupts the normal rules of society that morality goes out of the window.
• the just war theory is unrealistic and pointless
  • in a conflict "the strong do what they will, and the weak do what they must"
  • the decision to wage war is governed by realism and relative strength, not ethics
  • morality thus has no use in war
• if God 'requires us to make war' it would be wrong to disobey him, regardless of the requirements of the Just War theory
  • in the Bible God is frequently on the side of those waging wars that don't conform to just war theory
• The overriding aim of war should be to achieve victory as quickly and cheaply as possible
  • if the cause is just, then no restrictions should be placed on achieving it
  • the rules of conduct of war are mere camouflage because they are always over-ruled by 'military necessity'
• the existence of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons of mass destruction requires a different approach to the problem
  • these weapons can only be used for unrestricted war and so the condition of proportionality can't be met if they are used
  • using these weapons guarantees civilian casualties, and thus breaks a basic rule of the conduct of war
  • since these weapons can't be uninvented they render just war theory pointless
  • in recent times it has become possible to target such weapons quite precisely, so the problems above only apply to indiscriminate versions of such weapons
  • the ethics of weapons of mass destruction are a different topic
• terrorists are inherently uninterested in morality, so following any ethical theory of war handicaps those whom terrorists attack - thus a different approach is needed