NE203 Ethics

Complete Notes

23 August 2004 to 08 December 2004 (Weeks 1 to 16)

by David Underhill

David Underhill NE203 Ethics Notes (1st Half):_23 Aug 04 - 11 Oct 04 (1st - 8th Weeks)

David Underhill 30 Aug 04 (1st Week) p.3-7, 9-11, 13-19 (EMP); p13-16 (CS)
Ethics and the Military in America (3)
Purpose of ethics course is to develop ones ability to make ethical decisions and explain those decisions
US officers get their basic values from the nations documents (Constitution)
o It can be difficult to interpret there have been many Supreme Court rulings on it
The Frustrations of Ethics (3)
There is no single formula to clearly find the right ethical answer to any ethical question
A short course on ethics would not do justice to the rich moral heritage and profound concepts behind it
What Might We Gain From the Study of Ethics? (4)
New members of the armed forces have to learn that loyalty to the truth over shipmates, etc. is required
All members must understand that the US fights wars ethically not victory by any means
o This makes war more difficult, more costly
The Role of Philosophy in Morality (5)
Only through serious reflection can we improve our understanding of ethics
On the Eve of Battle (George R. Lucas) (9)
About Capt. Erskine, USMC in Kuwait awaiting for orders to invade Iraq (2003)
o Wondered why the US didnt get involved in Sierra Leone, Congo, etc.
o Despite his beliefs, he was proud to serve the Marines and lead his men into Iraq
o He was inspired by a Brit LtCol who reminded his men that they were there to liberate
Erskine was KIA, becoming one of the first casualties in the war (caught crossfire)
The Ring of Gyges (Plato) (13)
Asks why even bother to have morals
To do wrong is naturally good, to be wrong is naturally bad; suffering far exceeds the good
o As a result, men make laws so they dont inflict injury upon each other
Every organism naturally desires gain and pursues it
o Both just and unjust men have this desire
o Just men will follow laws in place, however, which check this desire
Every man believes that committing injustices serves themselves better than being just
Why is Ethics so Hard? (Grassey, Stockdale) (15)
The Perspective of the Individual (15)
In most situations, we easily identify right from wrong and hardly think about it
Moral Complexity life does not always offer a clear choice; there will be pros and cons to both sides
Ethics made hard from:
o Morality changes
o Pressure from time and the limits of knowledge
o Greatest difficulties arise when we have to discern human motivations
Emotions can influence self-control
o A moral individual may make an immoral or poor decision due to emotions; they may even realize it is the worse decision but go
ahead with it because of strong emotions
Perspectives on Organizations (16)
Ethics is not just about the individual
The organizations what really matters each person within should fall under its morals
To rise in rank, one must master the culture of the service, including its ethics
Personal and professional ethics are different and separate

Some Thoughts on Theory (18)

Two extremes of ethics
o Low: they specify the minimum level of performance
o High: they specify the ideal
Three approaches to making ethical decisions
o Absolute rules written in law, clear; Ex: POWs should not be tortured
o Consequences of actions and what one should do to achieve the best results
o What is the intent of the person?
Ethics is described as the high country of the mind by Robert Pirsig
o You must consider hard questions because our beliefs depend on our answers
The Bottom Line (19)
We are bound to uphold our professions ethical code
Bottom line: we may have to sacrifice ourselves in service
We cannot rely on ourselves to judge our judgment
o We have the responsibility to get external assistance to improve our moral deliberations
Being an officer requires strict adherence to the military ethic
Rescuing the Boat People (CAPT Rick Rubel) (13)
A US LPD comes upon a boat of refugees
The captain stops the LPD near them
The refugees try to swim to the LPD but the captain refuses to let them aboard
The captain has the XO check the boat and OPS tell him the rules for embarking refugees
The boat appears seaworthy, though they say theyd lost 20 men already
The LPD is on a mission and embarking refugees could be dangerous
With twenty dead already, it seems they must be having some serious problems

David Underhill 2nd Week Constitutional Ethics

Monday 30 Aug 2004 P.63-80
The US Constitution and the Moral Foundations of Military Service: Conflicts of Principles and Loyalties (63)
Warrior Code of Conduct
o Non-combatants are immune
o Treat POWs with restraint
o Use deadly force only when justified
Countries are viewed as having the right to run themselves as they see fit
US Officer Commission Oath
o Commit loyalty to the Constitution the framework for universal moral principles is contained within it
Protect interests with even-handed impartiality
o Commitment to sacrifice
Self for shipmate, shipmates for ship, ship for the mission
Even minor disobedience of reasonable orders shows a profound betrayal of trust
o Either obey or resign
Natural Law vs. State Law
o Even well-intentioned democratic gov can be guilty of moral error
o Disobedience is a last resort other paths to remedy the problem must be attempted
The Moral Foundations of Military Service Martin Cook (65)
Ethics of Military Service
Clausewitz the real purpose of the military is to serve the national interest if so then:
o Rhetoric about military virtues is a screen to hide the fact that the military only serves national interests

Only absolute pacifists deny the right to self-defense (resist border incursion, protect lives)
Self-defense often stretched to encompass vague ideas
States Importance
o States with boundaries and political heads not like todays until the Reformation
o After the 30 Years War, the Peace of Westphalia was established to prevent religion from causing further war
Emphasized war was for defense of territory and political
o Sovereign states analogous to a free individual, able to pursue the life and beliefs of their choosing, free from interference from
others
o Role of the military is to defend a political and social order from threats
Officer must serve with integrity and professionalism
o Not their responsibility to assess the states or wars moral worth
Killing for Ones Country
o One must serve the state as it is, not as a fantasy state that does no wrong
o Just and Unjust Wars, Walzer: One serves the state to protect the common lives shared by citizens
The sacrifice required by common life must be willingly accepted to have moral justification
GEN Eisenhowers Attitude: refusing to meet with the German GEN because he believed that professional soldier was not on the same
moral level as he was
o Suggests a new thinking about warfare
o Kuwait was a good example of the Westphalian paradigm, but it is tainted because of oil
o Kosovo was legit but the protest was that Kosovo was not of the nations interest
If this is why we stayed out, then claims to moral justifications are false and the war is just politics
Reasons to serve
o Westphalian answer (defense of common life)
o Universalizing answering terms of transcendent moral and political values
o

Ethics in Military Service (71)

Growing gap exists between military and civilians
o Could lead to the military believing itself morally superior to civilian culture
o Could also cause a loss of mutual trust and respect
People are drawn to the military for benefits (education, training, travel)
People stay in the military because they see an ideal human community grounded in service to others
Constitutional Ethics Col Paul E. Roush (Ret.) (75)
Initial fear of a standing army caused its control to be distributed between branches
Placing power in the hands of a small minority was seen as inviting tyranny
Presidential Constraints Commander-In-Chief, so he has authority over all military commanders
Congressional Constraints Power of the purse; regulates the armed forces UCMJ, admin stuff ($, retirement, etc)
Judicial Constraints few cases; usually give wide latitude
Supreme Law of the Land
o Military cannot ignore Congress
o Agreements the US makes are binding on its military too (Geneva, etc)
Constitutional Paradigm four principles guide its practical application
1.
Priority of loyalties: Constitution, Mission, Service, Ship, Shipmate, Self
2.
Resolve conflicting loyalties then act
3.
Follow the above principles or resign
4.
If the act is believed to be a greater evil than disobeying the above, then disobeying an order to attain a
higher good can be a worthwhile risk, though it may result in severe consequences prerequisites for this:
Fundamental violation of justice; non-trivial
Attempt to remedy the problem before choosing disobedience
Dont hide disobedience make it public, and warn superiors in advance
Must be willing to accept full legal consequences
o We are taught to disobey orders so that we can be autonomous agents
o Applies to things that will haunt you NOT trivial
P.47 64, 81 90 (Wednesday 01 SEPT 2004)
A Higher Moral Standard for the Military LtCol J. Carl Ficarrotta, USAF (47)
Military believed to be bound by a higher moral standard

Higher Moral Standard (47)

Unique moral obligations for military professionals
Military has good reasons for being bound more strictly to moral standards
Officers have so much authority that they should be very concerned for the welfare of those who they affect
Moral requirements due to the unique situations and contexts encountered by military professionals
o Does not indicate how one will act outside a military context
Combat is high stress and stress can wear away at morals
o Important to be morally steadfast
The Functional Line (50)
Hackett claims a bad person cannot be a good soldier
Each member of a unit must be honest with each other
As applies to the military
o Few understand the level and intensity of cooperation required
o Many functions facilitated by clear moral standards
o Failure can result in bad consequences
Functional line does not establish that the military professional has special reasons to be good
o Service is unphased if soldier puts himself after service, but gives nothing to charity
o Should be disappointed of situations like these
o No functional reason to be strict outside the military context, however
Functional reasons for being strict in other contexts
o Moral failure outside the military can hint at potential for failure in the military (cheating on taxes, etc)
Appearance of morality is functional
o Gains support and funding from the public
o A degree of trust is needed because appearances can be deceiving
Superiors behavior affects subordinates must set the tone
Demands of the Role (53)
Moral requirements may extend beyond what is functionally required
Obligations are different from others (like a policeman must step in to stop a crime while a normal citizen does not)
Cheating on taxes, neglecting your children, etc. are expected of everyone, not just those in a military role
Bound because the public expects a higher standard and military professionals agree to that when joining
o Have to be careful because public sentiment could disappear
o Or worse, it could change to something immoral, in which case morality must be pursued and public sentiment ignored (Nazi
Germany)
Group Image (55) - Lack of morals in one hurts the whole group
Moral Standards and Military Leadership Leon A. Edney, ADM USN (Ret.) and Henry Chiles, Jr. ADM USN (Ret.) (59)
A number of people in public and the military both fail ethically
o It is important to maintain our own high standards
o Hold those who fail accountable
US must hold a high standard to convince allies to remain such
A breach of ethics is a failure of leadership
Dual standards are not acceptable
Stephen Carters three requirements for ethical actions on integrity issues
o Discern what is right and wrong based on the facts
o Act to correct wrongs
o Openly justify your actions
Main Ideas
o Learn from past mistakes
o Confidence in leadership affects military readiness and ability to accomplish the mission
o Actions speak louder than words
o Know what you stand for
o Loyalty is important to both your superiors and your subordinates

Letter from Birmingham City Jail Dr Martin Luther King Jr. (81)
Injustice is a threat to justice everywhere
Nonviolent campaign steps (4)
o Collect facts to determine injustices
o Negotiate
o Self-purification
o Direct Action seeks to dramatize the issue so it cannot be ignored
Justice too long delayed is justice denied
Two types of laws: just and unjust
o Unjust law out of harmony with moral law
an unjust law is no law at all
o Just law man-made code that doesnt infringe on moral law
Morals means must be used to attain moral ends
Friday: 03 SEPT 04 p.25-28, 39-44 (CSME)
USS Vincennes Friend or Foe Ed. By Capt Rick Rubel (25)
USS Vincennes
o Capt Rogers eagerly engaged the small gunboats
o When the incoming target was flagged as potentially hostile, nobody double-checked the petty officer to ensure he had checked
the scheduled flights correctly
o The petty officers reports were not caught as incorrect by anyone in CIC
o Based on the information the captain had, the shot he took was appropriate
Acting on Conscience: Captain Lawrence Rockwood in Haiti Written by Dr. Stephen Wrage (39)
Capt Lawrence had intel about severe abuse in Haitian prisons
He confronted his chain of command and appropriate officers without success
He continued up the chain of the command, not giving up
His efforts eventually resulted in special forces entering a prison, and they confirmed the horrible conditions (skin peeling off, concentration
camp like starvation, etc.)

David Underhill 3rd Week Taking an Ethical Stand: Relativism

Monday: 08 Sept 04 p.25-42 (EMP)
The Relativity of Moral Beliefs and Situations (25)
Oath does not define what action to take in every case; merely rules out some options
Leaders are decision makers
Moral Relativism morals are dependent upon their acceptance by others
o No one is privileged enough to determine what is right or wrong
o Each person must decide what he believes; When in Rome, do as Romans do
We are responsible for our beliefs so before acting we should make sure we are morally justified (not just accepted by the current culture
surrounding us)
Military officers should be morally sound
o To provide society a good example
o Because it cultivates good leaders
Relativism and Objectivism: Are there Universal Values? (Barton Porter) (39)
Relativist values reflect our culture only
o Support this by pointing out that various cultures with different and changing beliefs all believe they are right
o Admirable because it is 1) tolerant of other views; 2) allows freedom to determine own views; 3) uncertainty about what values
need to be defended
Objectivist acts can be defined as right or wrong, and certain purposes as better than others
o Rejects relativist support saying various beliefs just indicate how clearly a culture sees values
Just b/c scientists thought the Earth was flat and then round doesnt mean both are right
o Argues diversity between cultures may be just be the appearance, not reality

The Challenge of Cultural Relativism (James Rachels) (29)

How Different Cultures Have Different Moral Codes (29)
Ex: Eskimos lived without outside influence for a long time
o When first discovered, they seemed to have little regard for human life
o They shared wives with visitors and neighbors, practiced infanticide, and left the old to die
o Shows how conceptions of right and wrong differ greatly from culture to culture
Cultural Relativism (30)
Different societies have different morals
There is no objective standard / universal truth to judge a set of morals with
It is arrogant to try to judge other cultures
The Consequences of Taking Cultural Relativism Seriously (32)
We cannot say others morals are inferior could not criticize slavery, anti-Semitism, etc.
We could decide right wrong based on our societys culture stops us from criticizing our own value
Idea of moral progress is false changes cant be for better or worse
Why There Is Less Disagreement Than It Seems (33)
The belief system may be the cause of what appear to be different values
For example, if a society thought it was wrong to eat cows because they thought after death your soul stayed in a cows body, then the
disagreement would be over where the soul goes, not values about whether it is right or not to eat cows
How All Cultures Have Some Values in Common (34)
Moral rules which are necessary for continued existence will be common to all viable societies
Why Thoughtful People May Be Reluctant To Criticize Other Cultures (35)
Nervousness about interfering with the social customs of others
A desire to be tolerant of others
Do not wish to express contempt towards the society being criticized
What Can Be Learned From Cultural Relativism (36)
It is dangerous to assume our values are based on an absolute standard
Keep an open mind
Herodotus: If anyone were given a choice between which countrys morals they would choose, they would inevitably choose their own
countrys morals over any others.
Wednesday: 10 Sept 04 p.43-46 (EMP); p.165-166 (CS)
Ethical Pluralism: An Alternative to Objectivism and Relativism (Lawrence Lengbeyer) (43)
Many see objectivism and relativism as the only options
Many choose relativism because they think it is better to stifle judgment than be indefensibly arrogant
o Objectivism seen as far-fetched, egotistical
Pluralism there can be multiple correct answers to an ethical question
o So an ethical question does have incorrect answers, but is not limited to a single correct answer
o Supported by if you ask who was the best baseball player, there can be a number of different, correct answers with good support
as well as many wrong answers
Our Values or Theirs? (CAPT Rick Rubel) (165)
Mission: sell major weapon systems to Saudi Arabia Ministry of Defense Advantages to US include:
o Save $500M (lower production costs)
o Strengthen diplomatic, military, and economic ties with the ally
o Provide more jobs
Capt James had little time to put his team together; found out in the airport the US lawyer was female
o One of their best lawyers
o In Saudi Arabia, women cannot conduct business, buy from a store, sit in the front seat, etc.
It is only 55min until the flight leaves
o By bringing her, he may jeopardize the mission

o By leaving her here, he may misspeak and cost the US

Capt respects the religious basis that founds these Saudi beliefs
o Wonders whether he should bring her (equal opportunity, after all) or leave her and try to explain that there culture prohibits her
from fulfilling her role

David Underhill Week 4 Religion and the Military

Monday 13 Sept 2004: P.107-112; 119-123
Religion and Military Ethics (107)
Morals are influenced by religion in those who believe
It is dangerous to think morals are sent down directly from God
o This makes it possible for morals to be changed or suspended by God
o Morality seems like it should remain constant
Some believe Gods intelligence and goodness ensure his actions are moral
o Less threatening because then God does not set and cannot change morals
Others argue (on the basis of Abraham) that morality has nothing to do with religion
The Readings
o Discuss the proper relationship between religious convictions and moral obligations
o Cook: argues religious beliefs help form and explain the basis of morality
o Rachels: argues morality defined by religion is paradoxical based on Greek scholars
o Eberle: defends morality and religion by attacking Platos argument
Religion may not be the sole basis for actions by military personnel
Reality Check: The Human and Spiritual Needs of Soldiers (Chaplain Brinsfield) (109)
Soldiers are reluctant to discuss religion because it is perceived to be very personal
Strong observance of religion is perceived as being detrimental to the unit
Most religions worship a deity though some promote wisdom, etc.
Religion has become more diverse in the US: 45 to 2,000 specific religions in 60 years
Most important intangible assets: morale, lan, espirit de corps, the will to combat, and the will to win
Morale most influenced by leading by example and unit cohesion
Moral is an expendable commodity
o Brits in WWII noticed soldiers peak ability was the first 90 days of combat
o After that, it declines until the soldier is useless (around 140 days)
o 10-15% of casualties were psychiatric casualties
Four elements of support which help to cope with combat stress
o Rightness of the war; unit cohesion from hard training, sports, and rewards; selfless leadership; and a desire for religious
fortification before battle
Manchester on Okinawa (USMC): through prayer he realized he was there to fight for his comrades and a greater purpose than himself
A soldiers ability to draw on his religion is an undeniable component of readiness
Does Morality Depend on Religion? (James Rachels) (119)
Connection between morality and religion
People often associate religion with morality and therefore call on priests to give ethical advice

A world without religion and a higher power lacks values according to Russel in A Free Mans Worship

The Divine Command Theory (120)

Commanded by God means moral, and the reverse means immoral
Pros: solves the relativism / objectivism debate
o Right and wrong is objective; those who dont obey will be held accountable at death
Problems
o Cannot apply to atheists
o Main problem (Plato) Is conduct right b/c the gods cmd it, or do the gods cmd it b/c it is right? both problematic:
If it is right because god commands it, then it is arbitrary because god could have commanded the opposite makes it
impossible to label god as good

If god commands it because it is right, then there exists a standard of right and wrong, which means morals cannot be
defined in terms of gods will
Many religious people believe the latter because it would be impious to do otherwise
Some theologians say the latter is impious as it doesnt allow morals to be defined by gods will
Some theologians reject this however (see below)

The Theory of Natural Law (122)

Says morals are decided by reason
Argues that god made natural law and us rational
This allows non-believers to use reason to determine morals just as easily as believers
Morality, like science, is autonomous of religion with its own way of being understood
o Religious people believe the understandings of morality as being revealed by god
o Allows non-believers and believers to participate in the same moral universe
Wednesday 15 Sept 2004: P.113-118, 125-129
Religion and Morality: Exploring the Connections (Cook) (113)
Historical Observations
Western religions honor Moses and Gods revelation to him
Many look to religion to know how to act morally
Many believe god grounds morals (without him, anything is allowed)
Many expect religious leaders to live up to higher standards
The Historical Problem: morals are arbitrary if determined by God and if they come from rational thought then it transcends rational morals
Religion and Rationality: Religious Synthesis (114)

Natural law says (see previous notes); allows believers and non-believers to participate in morality
Those who developed arguments about this synthesis and natural law have been prosecuted in their own time
Author believes religion will adopt forms of natural law for other principles as well so that non-believers can conform too

The Contribution of Religion to Morality (115)

Claims that religion must be the basis of morality threatens morality itself and is not well-grounded in religious thinking
Religion has an impact on the moral life of individuals through
o The sort of person one is religion tries to influence how children are raised and how people think about things like love
o Reasons for being moral gratitude to god
o Religion and the interpretation of the circumstances of action situations described in the Bible form foundations for actions now
Religion and morality have complex relationships
Religion profoundly impacts those who follow it
Natural law allows religion to share its morality with non-believers
A Philosophical Defense of Divine Command Theory (Eberle) (125)
Euthyphro Dilemma some use it refute DCT; Eberle claims it only refutes a caricature of DCT
o Does god command what is right arbitrarily or based on a universal standard he is passing down
Since god is perfect and loving he would only issue moral orders
o As a result, DCT is founded because the orders are not arbitrary because god would never order you to do the wrong thing
Friday 17 Sept 2004: P.137-144 (CSME)
A Shipboard Request for Abortion (Rubel, Martini) (137)
Background: A CO can grant emergency if an immediate family member is terminally sick or has been killed; the CO can reject a valid
request (particularly if it interferes with operations); transportation logistics may take some time to get the person home
o Abortion: Supreme court has ruled it legal, but law does not allow military doctors to perform elective abortions
o SecNav Shipboard Pregnancy Regs: will serve until 20 th week; must return by 4mo. after delivery; pilots grounded
The ship is nearing a foreign port visit in four days and a 3 rd class petty officer requests emergency leave to go back to the US and have an
abortion (requested via chit)
o Chit approved by all below the CO who is deeply religious and opposed to abortion
o The CO tells her that the request doesnt quite meet the regs and asks why she wants the abortion

She says she is only 19 and wants to attend college and trying to raise a child alone would hurt her future

Altering the Uniform (Gunther) (139)

An Air Force officer (orthodox Jew) sues to be allowed to wear a yarmulke with his uniform
Supreme Court Justices reject his claims and forbid him to wear it, citing the fact the USAF made a decision not based on religion, but on
uniformity and professionalism
Other justices dissented, saying his yarmulke had no impact on those around, and therefore he should be allowed to wear it

David Underhill - Week 5 Consequential Reasoning

Monday 20 Sept 2004: P.137-148 (EMP)
Utilitarianism and the Greatest Good (137)
Utilitarianism always act so that harm caused is minimized
o Described by Hutchinson, Smith, and Hume but popularized by Jeremy Bentham
Bentham argued it should supplant any other moral theories
o He felt laws should be evaluated with it (does it net more good than any alternative?)
o He was thought to be radical; further this thought by creating a public University of London and having himself entombed there
o Felt the concept of rights was illusory
o Thought morality should be like a science (logical)
o Created a kind of calculus with seven variables to determine which action was best for the whole
Required everyone affected must derive some benefit (prevents the formula from saying slavery was good, etc)
John Stuart Mill Benthams godson; most influential English philosopher in the 19 th century; espoused this theory
o The next article (by him) defends utilitarian reasoning from arguments from 19 th century critics
o Argues God is the ultimate utilitarian
o Tries to divorce utilitarian reasoning from its simplistic forms, saying actions must also be judged on the quality of their goodness
o Addresses a dispute over the Principle of Utility
from Utilitarianism (1861) (John Stuart Mill) (141)
Utilitarianism says actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness
Pleasure must be measured in quality as well as quantity
o Most do not wish lower themselves even to be satisfied
o It is better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied
o The young often have noble intentions which degrade because they are tender capacities
They change to inferior pleasures because they do not have the time or access to better ones
They still prefer the higher road, they just cant take it
Pleasure and pain are heterogeneous and it is hard to decide whether a pleasure outweighs an accompanying pain
Greatest happiness principle an existence exempt from pain and as rich as possible in pleasure; a standard for morality
The Golden Rule has the spirit of utilitarianism
Utilitarian Morality 1) Laws and social arrangements should place happiness of every individual in harmony with the interest of the whole
2) Education and opinion should establish an association between happiness and good for the whole
Motivation does not affect whether something is good or not in utilitarianism morality
The multiplication of happiness is the object of virtue
Some believe utility makes men appear cold and unsympathetic
o Not true because utilitarian are aware there are other qualities besides virtue
o The best proof of good character is good actions
Utilitarianism is not a godless doctrine if you believe god desires all his creatures to be happy, then god is a utilitarian
Withholding facts can be good (from a malicious person, or from someone deathly ill) can prevent harm
The principle of utility must be good for weighing conflicting utilities and marking the better
Christianity cannot guide utilitarianism because there is not always time to read through Christian texts
Morality has been passed down and is being improved; will never be quite perfect
We require theories to help apply the principle of morality
Wednesday 22 Sept 2004: P.149-153 (EMP)

Utilitarianism (149)
Nonreligious ancestors of 20th century secular humanists optimistic
Utilitarians act not in the name of justice but for the greatest good
o Only punish if it serves as a deterrent
o The threat of punishment is important; it must be used because of human failing
Consequentialist Principle teleological aspect rightness determined by results (ends, not means, count)
Utility Principle hedonic aspect pleasure is the only good, pain is the only evil
Hedonic Calculus quantitative score for an experience obtained by summing seven aspects of pleasure/painful experience
o Intensity, Duration, Certainty, Nearness, Fruitfulness, Purity, Extent
o Simplistic; called pig-philosophy because a happy pig > dissatisfied Socrates
Eudemonistic (Mills ver) defines happiness by types of pleasures (high intel, creativity, spirit; lower eat, drink, sex, rest)
o Lower pleasures more intensely gratifying but too much leads to pain
o Higher pleasures are superior
Two types of of Utilitarianism (151)
Act-utilitarianism an act is only right if it results in as much good as any other alternative
Rule-utilitarianism act right only if it is required by a rule whose acceptance would lead to > utility for society
o Debated whether this is valid because you can always do more good by going beyond the rules
Levels of rules three levels of rules to guide actions
o 1 (top priority)) remainder rule when no other rule applies, use your best judgment
o 2) conflict-resolving rules
o 3) utility-maximizing rules (must always be followed)
Negative responsibility you are responsible for the actions you take and dont take
Hiroshima: The First Use of Nuclear Weapons (1861) (Velasquez, Rostonkowski) (59) (CSME)

David Underhill 27 Sept to 01 Oct 04 (Week 6) P.159-181; Case Study p.3-6 Kant
Kantian Ethics and the Basis of Duty (159)
Kant German philosopher; his published works is generally very dense and hard to comprehend
o His notes for students and public essays are much easier to grasp
o Believed moral and mathematical reasoning were similar
o The starry heavens above, the Moral Law within.
o We can discover the secrets of nature which allows us to devise rules and most importantly allows us to choose to follow the
rules
o Explores this in Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals
Believed a revolutionary thought was needed to understand our morals from the external world so we could judge them
o Believed human reason was not passive but active in developing our understanding of the world
o Reason is used to determine how we react to desires, and so is associated with morality
o Two desires to fulfill duty or individual desires
o Those who fulfill duty are moral
His hometown was completely leveled in WWII and then rebuilt by Soviets and used as their nuclear submarine HQ
Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals (165)
Actions must conform with duty to be considered moral
Even if actions conform with duty, an individual is not necessarily moral depends on their motivation
o Only moral if it is done for the sake of duty
o An individual must choose to have a duty and then perform it
o Formula of Autonomy to be free, an individual must act on their own, not due to incentives
Three forms of the categorical imperative
o Formula of Universal Law an individual must act on universal obligations prior to personal desires
Individuals should not exempt themselves from rules which apply to all
o Formula of Humanity as an End Itself dont use people for your own ends
o Kingdom of Ends act like everyone is a lawgiver and citizen in the moral community

10

Ex: lying is bad because it prevents other from having all the available information which they can use in order to determine, through
Reason, what is right
o Must not only not lie, but must tell the truth
o You should not hurt a person in a burning car, but you must take action to help them
Inaction can be immoral too
Justifies military intervention for humanitarian reasons
The Reasonable ordering of desire and practical experience in our world results in duty (the laws of morality)

A Simplified Account of Kants Ethics (ONeill) (177)

Author intends to simplify Kant by only presenting the Formula of the End and comparing it to utilitarianism
Each of our acts reflects a maxim (the principle on which one acts)
Whenever we act intentionally, it is due to a maxim we hold
Using someone as a means is an action that they could not consent to in principle
o Done through manipulation (not sharing all the facts) or coercion
Kantians compare only the acts which have been proposed dont try to consider every possible act
o If an act is required to fulfill duty, it is obligatory
o As long as the act is just, it is moral it does not have to be the best act possible
Limits of Kantian Ethics: Intentions and Results
o Utilitarianism has an unlimited scope but its precision is limited by how much information is available
o Smaller scope only assesses intentional acts and can only apply to individuals as well as groups with policies/rules
o Kants ethics also focuses on maxims rather than results
Respect for Life
o Kant: people are not ends and so their lives have a high value
o This does not mean they will preserve it though Kant acts can be just and reasonable while not providing the best healthcare
also, individuals may take pains in order to not use others, making society an unhappy place
o Utilitarianism does not value human life specifically; it needs it, but allows for it to be lost for the greater good
Leave No One Behind (Capt Rubel) (3)
CDR Davis is in charge of a helo rescue squadron
A man goes overboard in almost zero visibility, 45kt winds, and 25ft swells
The rescue helo is sent but is taken down
Should CDR Davis send a second helo or cut losses?

David Underhill Week 7 Character and Virtue: Aristotle

Monday and Wednesday: 03 Oct to 05 Oct 04 (Week 7) P.183-200
Aristotle and the Ethics of Virtue (183)
Kant and Mill were both concerned about understanding the foundations of morality
Aristotle could a theory that could be mechanically applied
Kants demands are so stiff that even he questions if any have lived up to them
Eudaimonia is good for a man translates loosely to happiness or human flourishing a life of excellence
Courage is described as the mean between the vices of cowardice (deficiency) and recklessness (excess)
The Moral Virtues (187)
Definition of Human Life
o 1) Belongs to the rational part of man active (exercising reason) or passive (following reason)
o 2) Expression in Actions
Excellence 1) produces a good state and 2) enable one to perform ones function well
o Virtue in one makes one good and enables him to perform well
o Achieved through a mean too much or little destroy perfection
Goodness is characterized by feeling the right amount at the right time on the right occasion with the right motive
Extreme Rules hard to hit the bullseye so
o Keep away from the worse extreme one is always more dangerous
o Note the errors one is most likely to make

11

Always guard against pleasure and pleasant things

Habit and Virtue (Aristotle) (193)

Types of Virtue: Virtue of thought or of character
Character and Virtue comes out of habit
o Natural conditions cannot be changed by habit (rocks always roll downhill)
o Natural capacities are not from habit
o Legislators concentrate on habit citizens are made good through habituation
o Virtue and vice are from good and bad acts
Right Sort of Habituation
o Actions should express correct reason
o Habits must avoid excess and deficiency
o Pleasure and pain are important to habits
o Virtue is concerned with pleasure and pain
Pleasure causes us to act, pain causes us to abstain
Virtues are concerned with feelings and actions and these all imply pleasure or pain
Corrective treatment uses pleasure and pain
The soul is related to what makes it better or worse
3 Objs of choice fine, expedient, pleasant; 3 Objs of avoidance shameful, harmful, painful
A good person is correct
Inquiries must be about pleasure because all feel it from birth and it is important for our actions
It is harder to fight pleasure than emotion
How one can become good without being good already
o Conformity vs. Understanding
It is possible to produce something correct randomly so one must learn to understand and then perform well
o Crafts vs. Virtues Craft is a product; A craft requires only knowledge
Human must be in the right state to be virtuous 1) must know his act is virtuous; 2) must decide on them for them; 3)
must do them from a firm position
Virtue requires habit, not just theory
Courage (Aristotle) (197)
Courage concerned with feelings of fear / confidence (particularly death in battle) (6)
o Battle is the greatest and most noble danger
o He who is fearless in face of a noble death is brave
Not someone who is confident before being flogged, etc
7 There are fears beyond human strength all fear them
o Brave men will be virtuous and face even the things they fear whether they are beyond human str or not
o A man who exceeds in fear is a coward
8 Five kinds of courage improperly so called five kinds of courage:
o 1) Courage of the citizen soldier (true courage); 2) experience with regard to particular facts; 3) Passion; 4) sanguine people (not
really brave just confident); 5) people ignorant of danger (only appear brave)
Friday 07 Oct 04 (Week 7, cont.) P.201-207
Friendship (Aristotle) (201)
Bk 8, Ch1 two going together are better than one; friendship is noble
Bk 8, Ch2 Motives for love: 1)
o Do not love lifeless things because 1) they cannot return affection; 2) we do not wish their good
o Some friends are made out of utility not for pleasures sake and dissolves when utility declines/varies
o Perfect friendship is the friendship of people who are good and alike in virtue and wish each other well
Lasts as long as their goodness
Naturally permanent
Rare because people like this are rare
Bk 8, Ch4 Friendships between parent/child, etc are unequal and therefore a different kind of friendship
Bk 9, Ch3 It is not unreasonable to break friendships if the friend changes
o Do not treat past friends as enemies show some consideration

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The Warriors: Reflections on Men in Battle (205) (J. Glenn Gray)

Comrades have lived through hard and dangerous experiences which make them devoted to each other for life
Camaraderie is stronger than friendship and rarely can anything stronger be attained
Essential difference is the suppression of self in comradeship
Friends can endure wars horror without losing zest for life
A lost friends companionship is not replaceable

David Underhill 11 Oct 04 (Week 8) P.195-198 (CSME) Loyalty vs. Mission

EE Cheating Scandal (CBS News) (195)
Some mids got the EE test the night before the exam
They spread it to 80% of those taking the test
Afterwards, 24 were eventually expelled for cheating (some not until a year later)
Huge, life-altering changes
o no longer in the naval service
o honor compromised
o much less significant careers on the whole

13

David Underhill NE203 Ethics Notes (2nd Half):_18 Oct 04 - 08 Dec 04 (9th - 16th Weeks)
David Underhill 18 to 22 Oct 04 (Week 9) P.209-231 (EMP), 7-12, 57-58 (CSME)
Monday 18 OCT 04 Readings:
Natural Law (209)
Natural Law there are straightforward moral truths which can be discerned without an affiliation with a faith
Thread of Reason (the Logos) holds Law together
True law is right reason in agreement with nature eternal and unchangeable for all
Inspired part of the US founding documents
Summa Theologica (Aquinas) (213)
Natural law is imprinted in all, regardless of beliefs (is eternal)
Human (temporal) law dictate of practical reason
Divine Law needed
o 1) Since men can have eternal happiness, he must have direction from God to get there
o 2) Human judgment is uncertain and inconsistent
o 3) Man cannot make laws which judge internal feelings
o 4) Human law cannot punish all evil deeds
All acts of virtue are prescribed by natural law
General principles of natural law are the same in all men
The Ethics of Natural Law (Harris) (217)
Natural law is not a hard-and-fast guideline
Basic outline is clear, but the closer to moral judgments you come the more prone to error you are
There is an objective truth, but were still working towards it
Human Nature
o Useful to describe nature in terms of function
Easy to define a certain social role, but extremely hard to generalize it to all humans
o Can also discern behavior (i.e. inclinations) Two kinds:
Biological Values (shared with animals) life and procreation
Characteristically Human Values knowledge, security
Moral Absolutism and the Qualifying Principle
o Moral Absolutism one of the most significant aspects of natural law
o Ethical standards exist independent of situations and consequences
o Cannot trade off or compare cannot violate for any reason
o Moral judgments must evaluate intent
Qualifying Principles
o Principle of Forfeiture person who threatens innocent people forfeits their own life
o Principle of Double Effect one may perform an action that has a good and bad effect if:
1) The act, independent of the outcome, is good
2) The outcome is good and bad, and the good cannot be achieved without the bad
3) The bad is not producing the good; the bad is only a side effect
4) Proportional / equal the bad does not outweigh the good
Note: though it brings about an evil, the act is not evil
Wednesday 20 OCT 04 Readings:
Natural Law and the Principle of Double Effect: Six Hypothetical Cases (Lucas) (225)
Background
o Moral analysis typically takes place in thought experiments
o Drawbacks: thought experiments can propose examples that are exaggerated, strange, and bizarre
o Readers should not be discouraged by this drawback
See it as an attempt to isolate a range of relevant parameters to a specific question can be focused on
A classical example of this method in action
o Gyges finds a ring to make him invisible

14

Glaucon describes the myth

Argues justice is an implicit agreement to limit the sphere of actions we can take
We do whatever we could get away with
We dont do things because we are afraid what would happen if everyone else did the same thing
Believes justice is an outward social convention and that if there were two invisible rings, one belonging to
a moral character an another to an immoral character, then no distinction between their behaviors could be
made (both would abuse the power)
Natural Law and the Light of Reason
o Reason can, independently of religion, evaluate the nature of right and wrong
o Each case below is designed to utilitarianism alone is not enough to make a decision
Case I a trolley is coming down the tracks; if it continues, it will kill five construction workers. If you throw a switch, it
will go down a different track but will kill a single pedestrian
Case II trolley is going down the tracks and will kill five people unless it is stopped; you can push an overweight man off
the bridge (killing him) and stop the trolley
Case III One man is recovering from a stomach ailment. Five others are going to die unless they get organ transplants. The
one man, if killed and his organs harvested, can provide the organs the five need in order to live.
Case IV there is a enough medicine to heal five patients with minor (but fatal) disease or one patient with a serious illness;
there are six patients (five minor infections, one major infection). Does the doctor save the five or the one?
o Real-life case: In WWII, penicillin was in short demand. Five soldiers came back from liberty with sociallycommunicable diseases. The disease is potentially fatal if untreated, but a little penicillin will save them and return
them to the front. Another soldier has been severely wounded by shrapnel at the front and needs all the penicillin to
live. If he lives, he will be sent home. Who does the doctor give the medicine to the five or the one?
Case V There is one swimmer swimming in one part of the water and five swimming together in another part. A shark is in
the area and is coming to eat all six. You are in a rowboat and can get to and save either the single swimmer or the group of
five swimmers. Which group do you save?
Case VI There are five swimmers in the water and a shark is going right to them. You have a large, tasty person in your
rowboat and you will not be able to save any of the five swimmers unless you throw the person in the boat overboard (he will
be killed and eaten, distracting the shark and giving you time to get the five swimmers out of the water). What do you do?
o
o

Friday 22 OCT 04 Readings:

Incident at Shkin (Schoultz) (7)
I: Predator observed suspicious activity at Shkin (Al-Qaeda, Taliban)
II: US Spec Forces observe a vehicle exit the compound, flash its lights, and return with twelve vehicles
o Report this observation to their command
III: B1 Bomber sent to destroy the town
o Spec Forces CDR thinks this is rash and calls CENTCOM who cancels it
o CENTCOM instructs Spec Forces to search the town
o SpecF CDR delays entry into the town for 24 hours to get another team on site and give them some time to prepare
IV: Spec Forces assault the town, secure it, and destroy huge numbers of enemy weapons
o Seven POWs taken for questioning (identified by the FBI)
V: The original Spec Forces team remains behind a maintains an observation point close to the town
o Farmers see them, approach, and offer food and housing in return for a promise for the men not to bomb their town
VI: US forces are extracted; mission very successful (no key leaders killed, but key intelligence was obtained)
Terror and Retaliation Who is Right? (Rubel) (57)
Palestinian man grows up very sheltered
o Taught that the Jews are evil and killing them while sacrificing himself while ensure a place in heaven for him
o He blows himself up in a caf, killing fourteen men, six women, and four children
An Israeli gunship blows up a building with a bomb-maker inside
o The terrorist is killed, but so are fourteen men, six women, and four children (collateral damage: they were having a
picnic and the pilot did not see them)

David Underhill 25 Oct to 29 Oct 04 (Week 10) The Ethics of War

Monday: 239-254

15

The Justification for Going to War (239)

Even when civilians control the military they must consult it about war because that is their expertise
Performance is better when one knows what they are going to do, why they are going to do it, and believe in what they are
doing
o Example: Vietnam showed how a lack of these can destroy the effectiveness of an entire force
Just War Theory the task of authenticating claims that war is a moral necessity in some cases
War and religion conflict
o Christianity paints the picture of a non-violent society
o Buddhism espouses pacifism
o These things make it difficult for believers to reconcile the morality of war
US recognizes these people as conscientious objectors
Is it Always Sinful to Wage War? (Aquinas) (245)
Suggests it is usually sinful to wage war (not always)
o Limits warmongers from using this as their justification
Necessary Conditions for a war to be just
o Must be declared by a legitimate authority
o Must be fought for a just cause
o Must have the right intention
Other Conditions (by later scholars)
o Must be a last resort
o Must have a chance of success
o Must be proportional to the loss required
o Must be pursued through just means
Some believe this to be a separate consideration
Alsace-Lorraine French territory Germans claimed should be German on a basis of language
o Argues the people should decide where their taxes and conscripts go (in this case, they were loyal to France)
o Once Germany annexes the land, the right of France to take it back diminishes over time because the peoples
sentiments change
Though the standard for morals doesnt change, people can change which can affect the morality of an
action of a period of time
Legalist Paradigm
o Domestic Analogy - states are a part of the international community possess rights like individuals within a society
o Someone must be responsible for war no war can be just on both sides
There are wars which are just on neither side
o Theory of Aggression
States exist as a part of an international community
This community has law which establish a states rights (political sovereignty, territorial integrity)
The threat of force against a states rights is aggression
Aggression justifies two violent responses wars self-defense and law enforcement
Only aggression justifies war
The aggressor may be punished (like individuals are punished for crime; for deterrence, restraint)
Wednesday: Bushs Speech at West Point Graduation (2002)
The American flag will stand for freedom
Our nations cause has always been larger than our nations defense
We always fight, for a just peace
9/11 cost the terrorists less than a single tank
Even weak states can cripple strong nations with WMD
Deterrence cannot work against shadowy terrorist organizations
Containment is not possible anymore
The war on terror can not be won on the defensive
We will send diplomats where they are needed, and we will send you, our soldiers, where youre needed
Moral clarity was essential to our victory in the Cold War
Moral truth is the same in every culture, in every time, and in every place
From here on, it would be the nation I would be serving, not myself

16

Friday: 265-274; Bin Laden Letter

Terrorism (Michael Walzer) (265)
Randomness is crucial to terrorist activity today death must be chance so that every citizen feels exposed
Terrorism emerged as a revolutionary strategy only after conventional use during WWII (bombing of cities)
Categories of people who are killed
o Just terrorists can kill soldiers or immoral political figures (moral political figures are immune)
We judge the assassin by the victor Hitlers assassin would have been praised
Even in destruction, theres a right way and a wrong way and there are limits
o Unjust terrorists kill ordinary citizens
The bin Laden Letter
US is the friend of Satan
Why are we fighting you?
o You attack us
o You think Palestine belongs to Jews
o Muslim blood spilt in Palestine will be avenged
o You steal our wealth and oil
o You occupy our countries
We are men of peace just as much as Bush
What do we want?
o We are calling you to Islam
o Stop your oppression, lies, and immorality
You invent your laws (slap in the face of Allah)
Permit usury, intoxicants, immoral acts, gambling, exploitation of women, trading of sex, destruction of
nature by corporations
o Discover you are a nation without principles
o Stop supporting Israel
o Get out of our lands before we send you back in coffins
o Dont support corrupt leaders
o Interact with us on the basis of mutual interests

David Underhill 01 Nov to 05 Nov 04 (Week 11) Honor on the Battlefield

Monday: 275-292
The Moral Code of the Warrior (275)
A priest speaking to students at a Spanish university in the 1500s condemned the Spanish army
o Denounced the military for their treatment of the natives
o Disagreed with both their legitimacy and especially the way the military handled the natives
Even soldiers in war are constrained by natural law
The Code of the Warrior distinguishes the soldier from the murderer
The theory that war is hell and in hell one can do anything is denounced by most modern cultures (inc. US)
War Crimes: Soldiers and Their Officers (Walzer) (279)
The War Convention there are moral constraints on the military during war
All combatants are morally equal
Combatants: forfeit the right not to be target; gain the right to be treated humanely as a POW; gain the responsibility to fight
justly and use only the force needed to achieve the mission
In the Heat of Battle (280)
o Two soldiers each shoot Germans as they surrendered
o Officer tells CO they were in a killing frenzy and it was hard to discern the difference between combat and murder
o This is like a plea of temporary insanity

17

Allowances may be made for certain situations if a group has been attacked by soldiers feigning to surrender
before, they may be less sure of when killing is extra
In the Thin Red Line, the men continue to kill after overrunning the Jap position from the rear and the CO says nothing
o He should not allow the men to improve themselves at the expense of the enemy
o Furthermore, killing is more a sign of hysteria than toughness
o Command Responsibility CO must take action to prevent such immoral killings in the future
When combatants are ordered to kill innocents, the liability for their immoral acts is divided up
o Combatants responsibility for their actions is diminished
Superior Orders: The My Lai Massacre (282)
o Soldiers may not be transformed into mere instruments of war
o Two defenses argued by those who followed immoral, superior orders
Ignorance didnt know what they were doing was wrong (especially true with long-distance weaponry
and bombs impossible for a soldier to know if what the commander says is true)
Duress stress forced the following of the immoral action (holds true if the harm is not disproportionate)
Command Responsibility (286)
o Military commanders have morally crucial responsibilities:
When planning, they must limit civilian casualties to a minimum
When organizing forces, they must ensure their men are held to the standard
The Case of General Yamashita (288)
o US forces disrupted his chain of command
o His troops committed atrocities during this time (except those with which he could still communicate with)
o The US executed him for not maintaining control (two Supreme Court justices dissented loudly)
The Nature of Necessity (290)
o Killing civilians purposefully is always murder
o Murder can rarely be done for a good cause (under proportional duress, or some other special condition)
The Dishonoring of Arthur Harris (290)
o Harris was the commander of the British Bomber Squadron during WWII who led the bombing against German
cities and civilians
o After the war, he was not recognized and those lost under his command were not remembered
It was a big slap in the face and showed the British peoples new commitment to just warfare
o

Wednesday: 313-318; CSME: 17-24, 45-46

Is the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction Morally Defensible?: Ethics for Calamities (Reiman) (313)
Reasons in Favor of the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Innocent people should not be harmed
o Combatants are trained and equipped for war and are prepared to be targeted
o Minimizes overall casualties
o Creates more promising conditions for peace
Reasons for Doubting the Moral Validity of Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Biased in favor of larger powers - larger powers have an air force which can kill indirectly (civilian casualties called
collateral damage) while smaller forces attack directly (civilian casualties called murder)
Moral responsibility should be dependent on both consequences and intent
Walzer criticizes the doctrine of double effect for not imposing a duty to minimize harm to civilians
o The combatant-noncombatant distinction does not line up with the guilty-innocent distinction
Noncombatants are often the guilty ones (producing war materials, driving capitalism if thats the other
sides enemy, etc) and combatants are often innocent
Justifications for Abandoning the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Most people are Kantian, except when it comes to large-scale thinking (then they become utilitarianism) largescale makes Kant inappropriate
o Combatants and noncombatants are both members of the enemy, eroding the distinction between them
o Noncombatant civilians have some responsibility for what their gov does
People with special relationships with susceptible people are responsible for their care
As the harmfulness of an action goes up, more sacrifice is expected to prevent it
Principle of calamity ethics citizens have an obligation to stop the gov from committing large-scale harm
Interdiction in Afghanistan (Schoultz) (17)
Spec Ops asked if they can do a mission the next morning to stop a convoy of al-Qaeda leaders driving to the Pakistan border

18

There is little time to prepare but they get ready and go after the targets
Helos and SEAL/Ranger teams engage two vehicles and take them out (filled with terrorists and weapons)
LCDR Reynolds thinks he sees a woman in the car and has his helo gunner hold his fire
o Puts the bird at risk (SA-7 could have taken out the entire team and helo)
o Lands a few hundred yards in front and stops the vehicle
o Turns out he is right
Back at base MAJ Wyatt was upset about the risk
o Reynolds claims it was the moral thing to do based on his observations
o Wyatt says it was extremely dangerous and a poor decision and says they were very lucky

Incident at Roadblock (ed. Shannon French) (45)

Soldiers have to move through a city after parachuting in the night before
All inhabitants had to be off the streets by 8PM
The soldiers setup up barriers and stationed guards with loudspeakers and native speakers at intersections
Tanks are also present to ward off anyone venturing nearby
A bus comes driving at the barrier and refuses to stop despite warnings
o The occupants are dressed like the opposition forces and are firing shots
o When it comes across the barriers, the soldiers open fire, killing all but the driver
o They turn out to be joy riders, not opposition forces
o The officer asks the driver why they didnt stop; says they just wanted to see if the soldiers would actually open fire
Friday: 307-312
Winning and Fighting Well (Walzer) (307)

Battle of the River Hung

o The Duke allowed the other army to completely form up before attacking
o His army was weaker and lost
o I will not sound my drums to attack an unformed host
Mao Tse-tung said we have no use for his asinine ethics
o Argued guerrillas could not take prisoners
o Either disperse or execute a tactical decision
If rules can be broken for the sake of cause, then rules have no standing in any war worth fighting
Sliding Scale Argument (309)
Sliding Scale (extreme form) soldiers who fight a just war may do anything useful to fighting
o General Sherman held this view
o Soldiers wont kill civilians for the sake of killing, but will kill them if it advances their mission
Deciding against the sliding scale requires a position of moral absolutism according to many
o Requires one to do justice even if the heavens fall
Implausible for most
Another alternative do justice until the heavens are about to fall
o Utilitarian extreme restrains military action to usefulness and proportionality
Dealing with the tension between the rules of war and the theory of aggression (310)
War convention is set aside in favor of utilitarianism
Convention slowly gives in based on the moral urgency of the cause
Convention is overridden only in the most extreme circumstances
Convention holds and right are respected regardless of consequences

David Underhill 08 Nov to 12 Nov 04 (Week 12) Issues of Modern Warfare

Monday: 255-264
The Reluctant Interventionist (Lucas) (255)
April 1997: Sec. State Albright says US will now use force to defend human rights abroad
Jus Ad Intervention when to deploy force for humanitarian ends
o 1) When a nations conditions or behavior threatens others or
o 2) When a nation threatens basic human rights

19

Epistemological - branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge and its foundations, extent, and validity.
o Epistemological Crisis a traumatic revision of the understandings and knowledge of a society
o MacIntyres description is more troubling represents wholesale repudiation of a communitys beliefs
o Conflict models must analyze morality
The concept of humanitarian intervention has upset the balance of international relations as people theorize about ways to
make intervention a part of those relations
Moral considerations now play an important role in deciding a nations opinion and response to a conflict
Albright has made morality a basis for foreign policy
Realists fear that establishing a procedure for humanitarian intervention will allow strong nations to intervene in their own
interests while pretending their intent is to solve a humanitarian issue
o Author claims this is cynical because nations currently use national sovereignty as a way to explain their failure to
intervene in both places where it is in the nations economic interest and where it is not
o Attempts to write human intervention into realist policy have failed

The Intervention Imperative and the Dilemma of the Reluctant Interventionist

Force is certainly permissible when used to defend liberty, justice, and human rights
Sovereignty, anarchy, and self-interest provide an explanation not a justification for force
Intervention Imperative if able, a nation must intervene to prevent injustice
o How we carry this out is not specified
Reluctant Interventionist actively seeks to prevent injustice but has trouble deciding which merit intervention
Weinberger doctrine Can you offer reasonable assurance that what you are attempting to do is just?
o Intent is to make it hard for authorities to use force to further policy
o Albrights doctrine weakens this stance by relaxing constraints and broadening when force is justified
Draft Provisions for Humanitarian and Counter-terrorist interventions
1) Intervention is allowed when a nation greatly violates human rights or threatens other nations
2) Sovereignty is ignored if rights can only be protected through intervention
3) Intervention must be limited to humanitarian concerns or the protection of liberty
4) Military intervention must be a last resort
5) Military force may only be used if likely to succeed
6) Intervention must cause a proportional amount of good to the harm it causes
7) Intervention measures must be moral

Wednesday: 296-306; CSME: 47-56

Perspectives on Intervention: Somalia (Zinni) (299)
In Somalia, Bush sent the military in without a clear political objective that was translated into military objectives
The humanitarian effort could be done with the military, but without guidelines it might not be done in the best way
Somalians demanded things that the military wasnt prepared to offer (jobs programs, etc)
The American General set up a police force, prison system, and court system
o They worked well but were not part of a specific plan
The UN came in and completely changed the approach to fixing the country, excluding many who would have been involved
in the US effort
We have to decide what exactly our militarys role will be
The military has to pay for these missions regardless this detracts from its ability to fight conventional war
o Political motivation to get as many countries involved as possible is also a burden on the military
o Many other countries do not have the logistics or training to support themselves in situations like Somalia which
requires the US baby-sit and spend their own resources propping up other countries forces
To handle a situation like Somalia, a distinct policy needs to be passed down
America is the strongest and most economically great nation in the world and is a nation of haves
o We [must] make some hard decisions about the moral obligation we have for the rest of the world
Case Studies in Humanitarian Military Intervention (47)
Rwanda (1994)
Was a Belgian colony until after some time after WWII
The Belgians favored the educated minority ethnic Tutsis and when they pulled out a huge tension existed between them and
the majority

20

This tension began to unravel when the government by the majority was attacked by the Tutsis
When the leaders of both sides die in an airplane when it is shot down, Rwandas leader assassinate moderates and order the
killing of all Tutsis
Many run around with machetes, clubs with nails, and anything remotely deadly and begin hacking Tutsis to bits
The UN peacekeeping force (Belgian and Canadian, mostly) is overwhelmed and withdraw
o A captain with less than a hundred men is protecting over 2,000 Tutsis when he is ordered to withdraw
o His is torn, but follows the order the Tutsis beg for him to kill all of them rather than leave them there
o After he leaves, they are all hacked to death
o The Canadian general in charge suffers serious mental problems as a result later
Srebrenica (1995)
Srebrenica was a mostly Muslim city in Yugoslavia
Ethnic Serbs began an ethnic cleansing campaign
Dutch peacekeepers sent in to relieve weary, undermanned Canadians but are very poorly supplied
The Dutch become demoralized and communicate that they cannot protect their objectives
The Serbs capture 30 Dutch soldiers and threaten execution if they are bombed by air
The Serbs attack and air support is very lacking when the threat is reiterated
The Dutch are overwhelmed and evacuate, leaving the city to the Serbs who execute 7,000 Muslims
Friday: Code of the Warrior; Five Moral Dilemmas of Modern Warfare
Code of the Warrior (French)
A warriors code defines limits on what warriors can do and not do
Warriors of today often find themselves fighting enemies who fight without rules
The degree of separation between warriors and murderers is very small
Its easy to rationalize murder if one believes their cause to be noble terrorists do not see themselves as murderers
No matter how one justifies their actions, one must follow the rules of war or forfeit their right to be regarded as warriors
o Are the rules of war absolute or changing? Were American guerillas in the Revolutionary War murderers?
Rules governing when an how one kills distinguishes warriors from murderers
Terrorists believe the pricks of conscience they feel are their weakness trying to steer them away from their sacred duty
The ugliness of war against an enemy considered to be subhuman can hardly be exaggerated
Psychological damage is often the result of violating what is right
Technology cheats people from the chance to absorb and reckon with the enormity of what they have done
Warriors must respect opponents
Everyone who cares about the welfare of warriors wants them to have lives worth living after the fighting is done
The warriors code guards their humanity
Five Moral Dilemmas of Modern Warfare
The distances at which lethal force can be applied is growing
o Difficult for those who press the buttons to understand death is occurring
o Makes one observant, careful, accurate
In virtual war, death is far, far away
o A warrior must keep a sharp focus on death and those you are killing to maintain honor
o Technology can make you morally numb which isnt going to make you do your job with the discrimination, care,
and sense of responsibility you need
The temptation to vengefully, indiscriminately use force is great when the other side does not play by the rules
The enemy may exploit a warriors observance of the rules
o If we violate the rules, the consequences can be extremely costly
Military is also a diplomat of American values
Recently, military action has been subjected to legal review
o This does not necessarily provide moral coverage
Ethical life is to important to leave to someone else; moral abdication should not be an option for a military member
Moral behavior is always individual behavior

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David Underhill 15 Nov to 19 Nov 04 (Week 13) Liberty and Rights

Monday: 323-344
Rights and Liberty (Lucas) (323)
Military life is structured and restrictions are imposed on some liberties that civilians normally enjoy
Modern ethical thought marked by individual human rights
Liberty political guarantees respecting the freedom of individuals
Basic or natural rights are self-evident and unalienable (Jefferson)
o What are these rights and negative liberties?
o Negative liberties non-interference for the state
Still open to debate
o Whether or not political liberty is self-evident and inalienable
o Should any other human rights should be observed
On Liberty (Mill) (327)

Chapter 1: Introduction

Power can only be rightly used in order to prevent harm

Over himself, the individual is sovereign
Utility is the ultimate appeal of all ethical questions
Human liberty
o Absolute freedom of opinion
Freedom to express opinions (almost inseparable from the first)
o Freedom to pursue anything as long as it does not harm others
o Freedom to unite as long as others arent harmed or deceived

Chapter 2: Of the Liberty of Thought and Discussion

Nobody should ever be silenced not even one dissident in a sea of people who agree
To learn a subject as well as possible, one must study it from all perspectives
Freedom of opinion and its expression are required to the mental well-being of man for four reasons:
o 1) An opinion should not be silenced because it may be correct
o 2) Though an opinion may be in error, it is probably partially correct
o 3) Unless the truth is contested, it will not be fully believed
o 4) Without other opinions, the truth may be lost

Chapter 3: Of Individuality as One of the elements of Well-Being

Actions cannot be as free as opinions

Acts which unjustifiably harm others should be controlled
o Liberty of individuals must be limited so one does not harm others
Traditions is evidence of what experience has taught one
o 1) However, ones experiences may be too narrow or misinterpreted
o 2) Also, ones interpretation may be correct but unsuitable
o 3) Conforming to custom does not develop one
Mental and moral powers are improved through use
Each persons own mode of existence is the best for him

Chapter 4: Of the Limits to the Authority of Society Over the Individual

Everyone who receives societies protections owes society something in return

Everyone is bound to observe a certain line of conduct
o 1) May not harm others
o 2) Must bear their share of the labors

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Society must enforce that each person bears their share

If a person affects other, society has jurisdiction over their actions
No person entirely isolated
o Should laws govern mature individuals as well and protect them from drinking, drugs, etc?
o Acts harmful to oneself affect society too
Whenever there is a definite damage or risk of damage, the case may be governed

Chapter 5: Applications

Trade is a social act cheapness and quality are best obtained by allowing free trade (buyers must still have choice)
Liberty to sell dangerous items can be restricted in order to prevent harm
A public authority should interfere to prevent crimes and accidents
Acts which are harmful to oneself may be stopped if done in public (affecting others)
Taxation of stimulants up to where they peak is approved
A person cannot give up their freedom

Reflections on the Revolution in France (Burke) (339)

Government and liberty are both good (abstract)
Flattery corrupts both the receiver and giver
Do not congratulate too soon
The Revolution was to preserve our liberties
A constitution allow us to transfer government and policy to future generations
There may be situations in which democracy is needed, but not yet by great nations like France
o Aristotle said democracy looks strikingly like tyranny
People prefer liberty in virtuous poverty to a wealthy servitude
Liberty without wisdom and virtue is the greatest of all evils
Do not mirror the British constitution in France
Wednesday: 351-362
Paternalism (Dworkin) (351)
I: Paternalism interference with a persons liberty for their own good
II: Paternalistic Laws
o Breaking inflicts criminal penalties laws against dueling, laws which set maximum interest rate for loans, etc
o Law which make it difficult to do something not allowing one to defend a murder charge by saying it was done
with the victims consent
III: The class of the person affected is not always the person whose liberty is restricted
o Ex: Professionals have to be licensed (protects patients)
o Pure Paternalism those whose freedoms are restricted are also benefited
o Impure Paternalism a groups freedoms are restricted in order to help another
IV: Legislation which regulates how many hours a worker can work a week is not paternalistic
o The law is not overriding the workers judgment, but giving effect to their judgment because they couldnt do it
alone but only as a group
V: Mills objections to paternalism
o 1) Restraint is evil so those who restrain are burdened with proof
o 2) Since conduct affects oneself, one cannot fall back to the interests of the whole
o 3) One must consider the individuals own good
o 4) One cannot advance individual interests through compulsion
o 5) Therefore, one cannot use compulsion to push ones own interests
VI: Children may be interfered with because they have not fully developed their minds; hard to defer gratification
Paternalistic laws must clearly show the harm they are preventing by restraining liberties; must show they are proportional
Friday: 345-350
Human Rights (Nickel)
People have rights which prevent gov from taking certain actions against them

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Parts to an appeal Rightholders and Addressees; appeal says what the rightholder is entitled to
Universal human rights have become common in the past 50 years
o Violations still occur many nations still grant few rights to citizens
The Declaration of Independence was bold rebelled against the king and was the first document to assert that all people had
certain inalienable rights
Inalienable cannot be bargained or taken away
Types of Rights
o Liberty rights freedom of
o Political rights right to vote, run for office, campaign
o Equality rights freedom from slavery, right to protection by laws
o Due process rights speedy and public trials with counsel if needed
Magna Carta was the first document to say human rights were an important consideration
United Nations designed to formulate international law
o Universal Declaration of Human Rights intl. bill of rights (no force of law, but set a standard for later legal docs)
o UN open to all peace-loving states who promise to support the UN
o Has helped human rights be recognized in most of the world

David Underhill 22 Nov to 24 Nov 04 (Week 14) Truthtelling

Monday: 395-409
Upholding the Truth (Lucas) (395)
War requires secrecy and utilizes deception
Honesty is the best policy in most situations, however
Trust is essential for organizational effectiveness
o The military does not allow officers to lie
Western culture believes lying to be the worst of all immoral acts
o Dante (The Inferno) put liars in the deepest layer of Hell
Individuals lie because of: performance, protection from punishment, others doing it, etc
When is the Whole Truth Attainable? (Bok) (397)
Focus is on whether or not you intend to mislead
Lie intentionally deceptive message
Grotius argued that lying to thieves, etc. was justifiable
Mental Reservation if you say something misleading but qualify it in your mind to make it true
o When a law is too strict to live by, people find loopholes
o Public authorities still swear not to hold mental reservations
Truthfulness is essential to society
Deception is coercive and gives the liar power (until one is caught)
Liars do not like to be lied to
Liars use caution around those who they have lied to
o Few lies are solitary
As you lie, it becomes lies psychologically distressing and they seem more necessary and less evil
Trust is the foundation of relationships among people
Aquinas defined three kinds of lies
o Helpful lies, Jocose lies (jestful), and malicious lies
o Only malicious lies are mortal sins (the others are much less serious)
Religious Absolutist Perspective Death kills the body, but a lie loses eternal life for the soul. To lie to save the life of
another, then, is a foolish bargain.
o Two beliefs which support this:
1) God does not allow any lies
2) God will punish all who lie
Utilitarians did not accept the absolutist perspective
o Stress the differences in severity between lies
White Lies a lie not meant to do harm (little moral importance)

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o Upsetting news is usually sugar-coated, etc.

o Discretion must limit what is said
Excuses moral reasons people use to persuade themselves that lying is acceptable
o Four most common reasons used to defend lying: avoid harm, get benefits, fairness, truth
Moral justification must be made public
o Test of publicity asks which lies would be regarded as justifiable by other reasonable people
o Look at the lie from the perspective of all who it affects
o Levels of publicity
1) Look at the lie from the perspective of all who it affects (soul-searching)
2) Present the case to peers
3) (for more serious cases) Allow any to review the case none may be excluded
o Nature of publicity: 1) The public we consult should be greater than just ourselves; 2) No one may be excluded
o Limitations it is just a check
o What must be done to justify
1) Look for alternatives to lying
2) Compare moral reasons for and against lying
Remember that lying and force are similar
Also, remember that lying can spread quickly
Most lies are unjustifiable

Wednesday: CSME: 81-82, 109-114

Major Knight and Cambodia (Wrage) (81)
Knight directs B-52s to their bombing targets
One day he gets coordinates from an envelope from a special plane
The coordinates are inside Cambodia and he is to destroy all evidence that the planes bombed in Cambodia and pretend they
hit normal targets within Vietnam
Falsification of MV-22 Readiness Reports (Slyman) (109)
A squadron of MV-22s is having very poor readiness the aircraft are breaking quite a bit
The CO gets heat and has his job threatened for not having a higher readiness rate
The CO compels his officers and men to fudge the numbers and go around the system in order to trick the system and be able
to report 100% readiness
This came to the attention of an officer outside the squadron who tried to get the COs boss to put an end to the dishonest
practices
The squadron was reviewed by criminal investigators and charges were pressed against the marines who were guilty

David Underhill 29 Nov to 03 Dec 04 (Week 15) Justice

Monday: 363-384
The Idea of Justice (Lucas) (363)
Aristotle: Justice is a matter of treating equals with equality
Two distinct concepts (Aristotle)
o 1) Distributive Justice Appropriate distribution of societys benefits and burdens
o 2) Retributive Justice Equal administration of the law
Glaucon said justice was societys elite using their power to control society (still believed by moral realists)
We can object to the justice administered by stratified ancient societies because the criteria that determines how the benefits
and burdens were split up were irrelevant in determining what a person deserved
Leaders who are appear inconsistent or like they play favorites causes discontent within a unit important to military leaders
Justice as Fairness (Rawls) (369)
Problems of justice liberty, equality, and social differences in society
There are many overly simple formulas: Egalitarianism (equal share) and systems based on effort, merit (meritocracy), ability
and need (communism), and equal opportunity and success (laissez-faire capitalism)
o Difficult to generalize these theories which work beyond a legal system

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Often cause discontent and feelings that society is unjust

The form of capitalism above is not the form the US uses; businesses have some restraints in the US
Above form subject to corruption by special interests
Why is someone praised highly on the basis of exercising talents endowed at birth
o Frustrates those who working harder but have less natural ability
Third part of Kants Categorical Imperative problem: lawmakers biased to the needs of themselves and their communities
Original Position an ideal moral kingdom in which each lawmaker has no knowledge about his community or own situation
o Would lead to a society that was fair
o A powerful thought experiment which can be used to evaluate our laws
o Promotes two principles: liberty and equality
Equality has two parts: public office is open to all and those best endowed and lucky will win leading to
differences in social and economic status; not unjust because this inequality could be shown to work to the
benefit of even the least advantaged
Reflective Equilibrium
o Those in the original position
o Not all inequalities are unjust (like social and economic status; see above)
Difference Principle discrimination on the basis of race (etc) is unjust because the office is not open to all and the least
advantaged is not benefited
o
o

Wednesday: 385-394
Crime and Punishment (Duff) (385)
1: Punishment, the State and the Criminal Law
Punishment burden placed on an offender by an authority
Not all breaches require punishment
Types of Punishment
o Censure express disapproval
o Hard Treatment loss of liberties, money, etc. (criminal punishments)
2: Consequentialism and Retributivism
Consequentialism justify punishment because it helps out the whole (crime-prevention)
o Justified if benefits outweigh costs
o Prevention through deterrence, incapacitation, and reform
o Objections
Does not respect people as responsible
Treats all [citizens] like dogs because it coerces people
Retributivism only the guilty should be punished and only in proportion to their crime
o Negative interpretation the innocent may not be punished and the guilty may not be excessively punished
Requires punishment to be deserved and beneficial
o Positive interpretation the guilty must be punished as they deserve
Should be punished so they feel guilt; does not matter if the punishment achieves good outcomes
o Criminals gain an unfair advantage so punishment takes this advantage away
Objection: distorts crime (Ex: a rapist is not really taking advantage of those who obey the laws)
3: Punishment and Communication
People are imperfect; not everyone is motivated by the law incentives are needed for a working system
Punishments primary purpose should be censure
Hard-treatment punishments are justifiable as deterrents
4: Penal Theory and Sentencing
Principle of Proportionality punishments severity should be proportional to the crimes seriousness
o Helps determine relative severity
o Does not help determine an absolute standard, however
Courts need discretion in order to use punishment to further reformative aims
o Discretion could undermine proportionality
Billy Budd (Melville) (389)
Portrays a British naval ship in 1797 after recent mutinies on other ships

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Billy is highly regarded on the ship

His superior resents Billys popularity and accuses him of plotting mutiny
Billy hits the superior, killing him
The crew sympathizes with Billy
The captain holds a military tribunal and finds Billy guilty
Says striking a superior officer is against the rules and that hanging is the punishment despite the situation
o Captain viewed two ways
Unwilling to interpret the rules differently or show compassion for Billys actions
Moral hero for carrying out duty despite obvious sympathies for Billy
Loosely based on actual occurrence in US history
o Son of Sec War was a mid and tried to mutiny
o Was hung at sea
o Infuriated the Sec War did not think the proceedings were just
o Led to the founding of USNA to improve the quality of naval officers
o
o
o
o
o

Friday: CSME: 167-176

Walking a Fine Line (Varley and Roberts) (167)
Up until the end of the 1960s, firefighting was male-only
With affirmative action and lawsuits regarding equal opportunity, fire departments had to allow female applicants
There was heated debates over whether females should be held to a different standard and how it would affect the units
Eventually, a reasonable test uniformly applied to men and women was devised and put to use
Also, veterans had to begin testing so that a standard was enforced uniformly across the board

David Underhill 06 Dec to 08 Dec 04 (Week 16) Stoicism

Monday: 425-448
The Enchiridion (Epictetus) (425) ready at hand (handbook)
1. There are things within your power (opinion) and beyond your power (body, property, reputation, office)
2. Desire demands one to achieve certain things
3. Objects are the merest trifles and you can bear their loss (whether they be a cup or a person)
4. Think about what you do before acting (increases safety)
5. People are upset by their own views only do not try to make others feel as you do
6. Do not be happy at others excellence; make their excellence yours (I have a handsome horse)
7. If called on by a superior, go immediately and without hesitation for everything you leave behind
8. Wish for things to happen as they do
9. Do not allow problems to affect your will
10. If troubled, figure out what you can do to overcome it
11. Possess your things as if they are not yours so that if they are taken you can say they are restored, not lost
12. Do not allow a servant to disturb you because he has no powers
13. Do not let others think you are intelligent
14. Wish for nothing outside of your power if you wish to free
15. If you can avoid taking worldly pleasures you can rule with the Gods
16. Accommodate those who suffer but do not join them (internally at least)
17. Act your role in life
18. I can derive advantage from anything that happens
19. To be free, ignore things outside of your power
20. Do not allow anything but your own opinions to provoke you
21. Daily consider death (but do not desire it)
22. Persistence earns admiration; caving in earns ridicule
23. If you pay attention to external forces, you will ruin your life
24. Hold status through maintaining honor
25. Pay the price for goods for they are to your advantage
26. If affected by something, remember how it would have affected you if it occurred to someone else
27. There is no evil nature
28. Do not speak your mind to revilers (do not criticize?)
29. Understand the perquisites and consequences of any action you take

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30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.

Duties are measured by relations another cannot hurt you

Withdraw yourself from things outside your own power
You should be indifferent to all events because you can use all of them
Speak concisely
Do no allow pleasure to subdue you
Act publicly do not fear those who criticize you (because they are wrong)
Be courteous to your host
Do not try to do more than you can
Be careful not to hurt your mind
There is a measure of how many possessions you may have
Young women are flattered to be called mistresses; they keep their hope in their beauty and jewelry
Focus on the mind do not spend much time on the body
Those you perceive to be wrong still believe themselves to be right
Everything has two handles one which can be used, another which cannot
One cannot be superior due to wealth, eloquence, etc a person is not made of those things
Do not judge appearances (motive is what counts)
Display your principles through action
Do not brag about your strengths
A philosopher looks to oneself for all help and harm never to others
Interpret and analyze do not just read or listen
Follow your own rules as laws

Roman Stoicism (French) (437)

Note: this is a very minimal summary
Romans prided practical achievements
Romans evaluated moral theories with the gut-check method
Stoicism we desire good but have little control over what we crave so we must reconsider what we depend on for happiness
o We always have control of our will and so can decide what makes us happy
Wednesday: 411-424; 449-454
Leaders and Moral Warriors (Lucas) (413)
Stockdale did exactly as his country ordered
He was captured and treated very inhumanely by enemies who did not believe war had rules
His country disowned him and called the war he fought for them dishonorable
Despite this, Stockdale persevered, relying on teachings by Epictetus
o He not only comforted himself but commanded those imprisoned with him through the terrible times
Stoicism school of thought which gave rise to natural law, natural lights, and moral equality
Courage Under Fire (Stockdale) (415)
Stockdale was bored studying international relations at Stanford
He entered a philosophy class mid-term and was engrossed
o From this he got his inspiration and dedication
o His professor introduced him to Epictetus
o Read all of his readings twice (through two translations); felt he had a very modern voice
o Philosophy in general and particularly that of Epictetus changed him for the better he thought
o Made him somewhat anti-organizational, though not anti-military (Roman Stoics: Life is being a soldier)
Everyone should play the game of life as best as possible but life is like a ball after the game, the ball is not what matters
When shot down, Stockdale landed in a town where he was promptly tackled (his leg was broken badly)
o He remembered Epictetus #9 and was comforted, however
o He also recalled in Korea reporters had said American POWs acted like it was every man for himself
Turned out to be selective reporting, but made him feel like a man on a mission when he became a POW
Eisenhower had created the Code of Conduct (I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners)
o The broken leg eventually healed up and turned out to be a minor setback
The camp shocked all the POWs
o However, they did not allow people to get down on themselves theyd ask for their name and say were all in it
o This was a turning point in many lives
o Epictetus said fear and other emotions were a result of your will helped Stockdale through imprisonment
Organized the camp through a tap code

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Principle 1: BACK US Dont bow, stay off the air, admit no crimes, never kiss them goodbye, and unity over self
Always negotiate for everyone, not just yourself
Resulted in Viet Congs propaganda failing
Americans used sentences with double-meanings and jokes that native western speakers would pick up on
Forced Viet Cong to use the 5% of the POWs who refused to join Stockdales organization
Never charged with courts-martial
Viet Cong tried to break their will by offering to send some home early or put the leaders in jail
o He advocated that none try to get out others quickly agreed
o He and his top men put in solitary
He never tried to preach philosophy while a prisoner
After Ho Chi Minh died he was threatened with death so he tried to kill himself
o Viet Cong save him because they have to start treating prisoners humane
o The world spotlight is now focusing on them and a mistake could ruin their chances of ending the war
o

A Vietnam Experience, Duty (Stockdale) (449)

He was addressing West Point (1979)
Explained a little about stoicism each has a role in life and we must play well regardless of its importance
Why a man must keep his word (Locke)
o 1) God requires it
o 2) Society requires it
o 3) Not to keep your word is dishonest (shows duty can be understood without external laws)
Kant explained the function of the human mind
o Moral obligation requires us to obey the laws we make for ourselves
o Dutys obligation is unconditional
Obligations of an officer
o 1) Must be a moralist exemplifies good
o 2) You must be a jurist able to make decisions of right and wrong
Warning: your laws may be unpopular, but you must still uphold them
o 3) Teachers are as indispensable as leaders
o 4) Must be a steward take care of your men
o 5) Must be a philosopher to understand that morals are not always rewarded and evil is not always punished
The test of character is performance of duty and persistence of example when you know that no light is coming.
-------------------

David Underhill NE203 Ethics Notes (2nd Half):_18 Oct 04 - 08 Dec 04 (9th - 16th Weeks)
David Underhill 18 to 22 Oct 04 (Week 9) P.209-231 (EMP), 7-12, 57-58 (CSME)
Monday 18 OCT 04 Readings:
Natural Law (209)
Natural Law there are straightforward moral truths which can be discerned without an affiliation with a faith
Thread of Reason (the Logos) holds Law together
True law is right reason in agreement with nature eternal and unchangeable for all
Inspired part of the US founding documents
Summa Theologica (Aquinas) (213)
Natural law is imprinted in all, regardless of beliefs (is eternal)
Human (temporal) law dictate of practical reason
Divine Law needed
o 1) Since men can have eternal happiness, he must have direction from God to get there
o 2) Human judgment is uncertain and inconsistent
o 3) Man cannot make laws which judge internal feelings
o 4) Human law cannot punish all evil deeds
All acts of virtue are prescribed by natural law
General principles of natural law are the same in all men

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The Ethics of Natural Law (Harris) (217)

Natural law is not a hard-and-fast guideline
Basic outline is clear, but the closer to moral judgments you come the more prone to error you are
There is an objective truth, but were still working towards it
Human Nature
o Useful to describe nature in terms of function
Easy to define a certain social role, but extremely hard to generalize it to all humans
o Can also discern behavior (i.e. inclinations) Two kinds:
Biological Values (shared with animals) life and procreation
Characteristically Human Values knowledge, security
Moral Absolutism and the Qualifying Principle
o Moral Absolutism one of the most significant aspects of natural law
o Ethical standards exist independent of situations and consequences
o Cannot trade off or compare cannot violate for any reason
o Moral judgments must evaluate intent
Qualifying Principles
o Principle of Forfeiture person who threatens innocent people forfeits their own life
o Principle of Double Effect one may perform an action that has a good and bad effect if:
1) The act, independent of the outcome, is good
2) The outcome is good and bad, and the good cannot be achieved without the bad
3) The bad is not producing the good; the bad is only a side effect
4) Proportional / equal the bad does not outweigh the good
Note: though it brings about an evil, the act is not evil
Wednesday 20 OCT 04 Readings:
Natural Law and the Principle of Double Effect: Six Hypothetical Cases (Lucas) (225)
Background
o Moral analysis typically takes place in thought experiments
o Drawbacks: thought experiments can propose examples that are exaggerated, strange, and bizarre
o Readers should not be discouraged by this drawback
See it as an attempt to isolate a range of relevant parameters to a specific question can be focused on
A classical example of this method in action
o Gyges finds a ring to make him invisible
o Glaucon describes the myth
o Argues justice is an implicit agreement to limit the sphere of actions we can take
We do whatever we could get away with
We dont do things because we are afraid what would happen if everyone else did the same thing
Believes justice is an outward social convention and that if there were two invisible rings, one belonging to
a moral character an another to an immoral character, then no distinction between their behaviors could be
made (both would abuse the power)
Natural Law and the Light of Reason
o Reason can, independently of religion, evaluate the nature of right and wrong
o Each case below is designed to utilitarianism alone is not enough to make a decision
Case I a trolley is coming down the tracks; if it continues, it will kill five construction workers. If you throw a switch, it
will go down a different track but will kill a single pedestrian
Case II trolley is going down the tracks and will kill five people unless it is stopped; you can push an overweight man off
the bridge (killing him) and stop the trolley
Case III One man is recovering from a stomach ailment. Five others are going to die unless they get organ transplants. The
one man, if killed and his organs harvested, can provide the organs the five need in order to live.
Case IV there is a enough medicine to heal five patients with minor (but fatal) disease or one patient with a serious illness;
there are six patients (five minor infections, one major infection). Does the doctor save the five or the one?
o Real-life case: In WWII, penicillin was in short demand. Five soldiers came back from liberty with sociallycommunicable diseases. The disease is potentially fatal if untreated, but a little penicillin will save them and return
them to the front. Another soldier has been severely wounded by shrapnel at the front and needs all the penicillin to
live. If he lives, he will be sent home. Who does the doctor give the medicine to the five or the one?

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Case V There is one swimmer swimming in one part of the water and five swimming together in another part. A shark is in
the area and is coming to eat all six. You are in a rowboat and can get to and save either the single swimmer or the group of
five swimmers. Which group do you save?
Case VI There are five swimmers in the water and a shark is going right to them. You have a large, tasty person in your
rowboat and you will not be able to save any of the five swimmers unless you throw the person in the boat overboard (he will
be killed and eaten, distracting the shark and giving you time to get the five swimmers out of the water). What do you do?

Friday 22 OCT 04 Readings:

Incident at Shkin (Schoultz) (7)
I: Predator observed suspicious activity at Shkin (Al-Qaeda, Taliban)
II: US Spec Forces observe a vehicle exit the compound, flash its lights, and return with twelve vehicles
o Report this observation to their command
III: B1 Bomber sent to destroy the town
o Spec Forces CDR thinks this is rash and calls CENTCOM who cancels it
o CENTCOM instructs Spec Forces to search the town
o SpecF CDR delays entry into the town for 24 hours to get another team on site and give them some time to prepare
IV: Spec Forces assault the town, secure it, and destroy huge numbers of enemy weapons
o Seven POWs taken for questioning (identified by the FBI)
V: The original Spec Forces team remains behind a maintains an observation point close to the town
o Farmers see them, approach, and offer food and housing in return for a promise for the men not to bomb their town
VI: US forces are extracted; mission very successful (no key leaders killed, but key intelligence was obtained)
Terror and Retaliation Who is Right? (Rubel) (57)
Palestinian man grows up very sheltered
o Taught that the Jews are evil and killing them while sacrificing himself while ensure a place in heaven for him
o He blows himself up in a caf, killing fourteen men, six women, and four children
An Israeli gunship blows up a building with a bomb-maker inside
o The terrorist is killed, but so are fourteen men, six women, and four children (collateral damage: they were having a
picnic and the pilot did not see them)

David Underhill 25 Oct to 29 Oct 04 (Week 10) The Ethics of War

Monday: 239-254
The Justification for Going to War (239)
Even when civilians control the military they must consult it about war because that is their expertise
Performance is better when one knows what they are going to do, why they are going to do it, and believe in what they are
doing
o Example: Vietnam showed how a lack of these can destroy the effectiveness of an entire force
Just War Theory the task of authenticating claims that war is a moral necessity in some cases
War and religion conflict
o Christianity paints the picture of a non-violent society
o Buddhism espouses pacifism
o These things make it difficult for believers to reconcile the morality of war
US recognizes these people as conscientious objectors
Is it Always Sinful to Wage War? (Aquinas) (245)
Suggests it is usually sinful to wage war (not always)
o Limits warmongers from using this as their justification
Necessary Conditions for a war to be just
o Must be declared by a legitimate authority
o Must be fought for a just cause
o Must have the right intention
Other Conditions (by later scholars)
o Must be a last resort
o Must have a chance of success

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Must be proportional to the loss required

Must be pursued through just means
Some believe this to be a separate consideration
Alsace-Lorraine French territory Germans claimed should be German on a basis of language
o Argues the people should decide where their taxes and conscripts go (in this case, they were loyal to France)
o Once Germany annexes the land, the right of France to take it back diminishes over time because the peoples
sentiments change
Though the standard for morals doesnt change, people can change which can affect the morality of an
action of a period of time
Legalist Paradigm
o Domestic Analogy - states are a part of the international community possess rights like individuals within a society
o Someone must be responsible for war no war can be just on both sides
There are wars which are just on neither side
o Theory of Aggression
States exist as a part of an international community
This community has law which establish a states rights (political sovereignty, territorial integrity)
The threat of force against a states rights is aggression
Aggression justifies two violent responses wars self-defense and law enforcement
Only aggression justifies war
The aggressor may be punished (like individuals are punished for crime; for deterrence, restraint)
o
o

Wednesday: Bushs Speech at West Point Graduation (2002)

The American flag will stand for freedom
Our nations cause has always been larger than our nations defense
We always fight, for a just peace
9/11 cost the terrorists less than a single tank
Even weak states can cripple strong nations with WMD
Deterrence cannot work against shadowy terrorist organizations
Containment is not possible anymore
The war on terror can not be won on the defensive
We will send diplomats where they are needed, and we will send you, our soldiers, where youre needed
Moral clarity was essential to our victory in the Cold War
Moral truth is the same in every culture, in every time, and in every place
From here on, it would be the nation I would be serving, not myself
Friday: 265-274; Bin Laden Letter
Terrorism (Michael Walzer) (265)
Randomness is crucial to terrorist activity today death must be chance so that every citizen feels exposed
Terrorism emerged as a revolutionary strategy only after conventional use during WWII (bombing of cities)
Categories of people who are killed
o Just terrorists can kill soldiers or immoral political figures (moral political figures are immune)
We judge the assassin by the victor Hitlers assassin would have been praised
Even in destruction, theres a right way and a wrong way and there are limits
o Unjust terrorists kill ordinary citizens
The bin Laden Letter
US is the friend of Satan
Why are we fighting you?
o You attack us
o You think Palestine belongs to Jews
o Muslim blood spilt in Palestine will be avenged
o You steal our wealth and oil
o You occupy our countries
We are men of peace just as much as Bush
What do we want?

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o
o

o
o
o
o
o

We are calling you to Islam

Stop your oppression, lies, and immorality
You invent your laws (slap in the face of Allah)
Permit usury, intoxicants, immoral acts, gambling, exploitation of women, trading of sex, destruction of
nature by corporations
Discover you are a nation without principles
Stop supporting Israel
Get out of our lands before we send you back in coffins
Dont support corrupt leaders
Interact with us on the basis of mutual interests

David Underhill 01 Nov to 05 Nov 04 (Week 11) Honor on the Battlefield

Monday: 275-292
The Moral Code of the Warrior (275)
A priest speaking to students at a Spanish university in the 1500s condemned the Spanish army
o Denounced the military for their treatment of the natives
o Disagreed with both their legitimacy and especially the way the military handled the natives
Even soldiers in war are constrained by natural law
The Code of the Warrior distinguishes the soldier from the murderer
The theory that war is hell and in hell one can do anything is denounced by most modern cultures (inc. US)
War Crimes: Soldiers and Their Officers (Walzer) (279)
The War Convention there are moral constraints on the military during war
All combatants are morally equal
Combatants: forfeit the right not to be target; gain the right to be treated humanely as a POW; gain the responsibility to fight
justly and use only the force needed to achieve the mission
In the Heat of Battle (280)
o Two soldiers each shoot Germans as they surrendered
o Officer tells CO they were in a killing frenzy and it was hard to discern the difference between combat and murder
o This is like a plea of temporary insanity
o Allowances may be made for certain situations if a group has been attacked by soldiers feigning to surrender
before, they may be less sure of when killing is extra
In the Thin Red Line, the men continue to kill after overrunning the Jap position from the rear and the CO says nothing
o He should not allow the men to improve themselves at the expense of the enemy
o Furthermore, killing is more a sign of hysteria than toughness
o Command Responsibility CO must take action to prevent such immoral killings in the future
When combatants are ordered to kill innocents, the liability for their immoral acts is divided up
o Combatants responsibility for their actions is diminished
Superior Orders: The My Lai Massacre (282)
o Soldiers may not be transformed into mere instruments of war
o Two defenses argued by those who followed immoral, superior orders
Ignorance didnt know what they were doing was wrong (especially true with long-distance weaponry
and bombs impossible for a soldier to know if what the commander says is true)
Duress stress forced the following of the immoral action (holds true if the harm is not disproportionate)
Command Responsibility (286)
o Military commanders have morally crucial responsibilities:
When planning, they must limit civilian casualties to a minimum
When organizing forces, they must ensure their men are held to the standard
The Case of General Yamashita (288)
o US forces disrupted his chain of command
o His troops committed atrocities during this time (except those with which he could still communicate with)
o The US executed him for not maintaining control (two Supreme Court justices dissented loudly)
The Nature of Necessity (290)
o Killing civilians purposefully is always murder

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o Murder can rarely be done for a good cause (under proportional duress, or some other special condition)
The Dishonoring of Arthur Harris (290)
o Harris was the commander of the British Bomber Squadron during WWII who led the bombing against German
cities and civilians
o After the war, he was not recognized and those lost under his command were not remembered
It was a big slap in the face and showed the British peoples new commitment to just warfare

Wednesday: 313-318; CSME: 17-24, 45-46

Is the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction Morally Defensible?: Ethics for Calamities (Reiman) (313)
Reasons in Favor of the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Innocent people should not be harmed
o Combatants are trained and equipped for war and are prepared to be targeted
o Minimizes overall casualties
o Creates more promising conditions for peace
Reasons for Doubting the Moral Validity of Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Biased in favor of larger powers - larger powers have an air force which can kill indirectly (civilian casualties called
collateral damage) while smaller forces attack directly (civilian casualties called murder)
Moral responsibility should be dependent on both consequences and intent
Walzer criticizes the doctrine of double effect for not imposing a duty to minimize harm to civilians
o The combatant-noncombatant distinction does not line up with the guilty-innocent distinction
Noncombatants are often the guilty ones (producing war materials, driving capitalism if thats the other
sides enemy, etc) and combatants are often innocent
Justifications for Abandoning the Combatant-Noncombatant Distinction
o Most people are Kantian, except when it comes to large-scale thinking (then they become utilitarianism) largescale makes Kant inappropriate
o Combatants and noncombatants are both members of the enemy, eroding the distinction between them
o Noncombatant civilians have some responsibility for what their gov does
People with special relationships with susceptible people are responsible for their care
As the harmfulness of an action goes up, more sacrifice is expected to prevent it
Principle of calamity ethics citizens have an obligation to stop the gov from committing large-scale harm
Interdiction in Afghanistan (Schoultz) (17)
Spec Ops asked if they can do a mission the next morning to stop a convoy of al-Qaeda leaders driving to the Pakistan border
There is little time to prepare but they get ready and go after the targets
Helos and SEAL/Ranger teams engage two vehicles and take them out (filled with terrorists and weapons)
LCDR Reynolds thinks he sees a woman in the car and has his helo gunner hold his fire
o Puts the bird at risk (SA-7 could have taken out the entire team and helo)
o Lands a few hundred yards in front and stops the vehicle
o Turns out he is right
Back at base MAJ Wyatt was upset about the risk
o Reynolds claims it was the moral thing to do based on his observations
o Wyatt says it was extremely dangerous and a poor decision and says they were very lucky
Incident at Roadblock (ed. Shannon French) (45)
Soldiers have to move through a city after parachuting in the night before
All inhabitants had to be off the streets by 8PM
The soldiers setup up barriers and stationed guards with loudspeakers and native speakers at intersections
Tanks are also present to ward off anyone venturing nearby
A bus comes driving at the barrier and refuses to stop despite warnings
o The occupants are dressed like the opposition forces and are firing shots
o When it comes across the barriers, the soldiers open fire, killing all but the driver
o They turn out to be joy riders, not opposition forces
o The officer asks the driver why they didnt stop; says they just wanted to see if the soldiers would actually open fire
Friday: 307-312
Winning and Fighting Well (Walzer) (307)

Battle of the River Hung

34

o The Duke allowed the other army to completely form up before attacking
o His army was weaker and lost
o I will not sound my drums to attack an unformed host
Mao Tse-tung said we have no use for his asinine ethics
o Argued guerrillas could not take prisoners
o Either disperse or execute a tactical decision
If rules can be broken for the sake of cause, then rules have no standing in any war worth fighting
Sliding Scale Argument (309)
Sliding Scale (extreme form) soldiers who fight a just war may do anything useful to fighting
o General Sherman held this view
o Soldiers wont kill civilians for the sake of killing, but will kill them if it advances their mission
Deciding against the sliding scale requires a position of moral absolutism according to many
o Requires one to do justice even if the heavens fall
Implausible for most
Another alternative do justice until the heavens are about to fall
o Utilitarian extreme restrains military action to usefulness and proportionality
Dealing with the tension between the rules of war and the theory of aggression (310)
War convention is set aside in favor of utilitarianism
Convention slowly gives in based on the moral urgency of the cause
Convention is overridden only in the most extreme circumstances
Convention holds and right are respected regardless of consequences

David Underhill 08 Nov to 12 Nov 04 (Week 12) Issues of Modern Warfare

Monday: 255-264
The Reluctant Interventionist (Lucas) (255)
April 1997: Sec. State Albright says US will now use force to defend human rights abroad
Jus Ad Intervention when to deploy force for humanitarian ends
o 1) When a nations conditions or behavior threatens others or
o 2) When a nation threatens basic human rights
Epistemological - branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge and its foundations, extent, and validity.
o Epistemological Crisis a traumatic revision of the understandings and knowledge of a society
o MacIntyres description is more troubling represents wholesale repudiation of a communitys beliefs
o Conflict models must analyze morality
The concept of humanitarian intervention has upset the balance of international relations as people theorize about ways to
make intervention a part of those relations
Moral considerations now play an important role in deciding a nations opinion and response to a conflict
Albright has made morality a basis for foreign policy
Realists fear that establishing a procedure for humanitarian intervention will allow strong nations to intervene in their own
interests while pretending their intent is to solve a humanitarian issue
o Author claims this is cynical because nations currently use national sovereignty as a way to explain their failure to
intervene in both places where it is in the nations economic interest and where it is not
o Attempts to write human intervention into realist policy have failed

The Intervention Imperative and the Dilemma of the Reluctant Interventionist

Force is certainly permissible when used to defend liberty, justice, and human rights
Sovereignty, anarchy, and self-interest provide an explanation not a justification for force
Intervention Imperative if able, a nation must intervene to prevent injustice
o How we carry this out is not specified
Reluctant Interventionist actively seeks to prevent injustice but has trouble deciding which merit intervention
Weinberger doctrine Can you offer reasonable assurance that what you are attempting to do is just?
o Intent is to make it hard for authorities to use force to further policy
o Albrights doctrine weakens this stance by relaxing constraints and broadening when force is justified
Draft Provisions for Humanitarian and Counter-terrorist interventions

35

8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
13)
14)

Intervention is allowed when a nation greatly violates human rights or threatens other nations
Sovereignty is ignored if rights can only be protected through intervention
Intervention must be limited to humanitarian concerns or the protection of liberty
Military intervention must be a last resort
Military force may only be used if likely to succeed
Intervention must cause a proportional amount of good to the harm it causes
Intervention measures must be moral

Wednesday: 296-306; CSME: 47-56

Perspectives on Intervention: Somalia (Zinni) (299)
In Somalia, Bush sent the military in without a clear political objective that was translated into military objectives
The humanitarian effort could be done with the military, but without guidelines it might not be done in the best way
Somalians demanded things that the military wasnt prepared to offer (jobs programs, etc)
The American General set up a police force, prison system, and court system
o They worked well but were not part of a specific plan
The UN came in and completely changed the approach to fixing the country, excluding many who would have been involved
in the US effort
We have to decide what exactly our militarys role will be
The military has to pay for these missions regardless this detracts from its ability to fight conventional war
o Political motivation to get as many countries involved as possible is also a burden on the military
o Many other countries do not have the logistics or training to support themselves in situations like Somalia which
requires the US baby-sit and spend their own resources propping up other countries forces
To handle a situation like Somalia, a distinct policy needs to be passed down
America is the strongest and most economically great nation in the world and is a nation of haves
o We [must] make some hard decisions about the moral obligation we have for the rest of the world
Case Studies in Humanitarian Military Intervention (47)
Rwanda (1994)
Was a Belgian colony until after some time after WWII
The Belgians favored the educated minority ethnic Tutsis and when they pulled out a huge tension existed between them and
the majority
This tension began to unravel when the government by the majority was attacked by the Tutsis
When the leaders of both sides die in an airplane when it is shot down, Rwandas leader assassinate moderates and order the
killing of all Tutsis
Many run around with machetes, clubs with nails, and anything remotely deadly and begin hacking Tutsis to bits
The UN peacekeeping force (Belgian and Canadian, mostly) is overwhelmed and withdraw
o A captain with less than a hundred men is protecting over 2,000 Tutsis when he is ordered to withdraw
o His is torn, but follows the order the Tutsis beg for him to kill all of them rather than leave them there
o After he leaves, they are all hacked to death
o The Canadian general in charge suffers serious mental problems as a result later
Srebrenica (1995)
Srebrenica was a mostly Muslim city in Yugoslavia
Ethnic Serbs began an ethnic cleansing campaign
Dutch peacekeepers sent in to relieve weary, undermanned Canadians but are very poorly supplied
The Dutch become demoralized and communicate that they cannot protect their objectives
The Serbs capture 30 Dutch soldiers and threaten execution if they are bombed by air
The Serbs attack and air support is very lacking when the threat is reiterated
The Dutch are overwhelmed and evacuate, leaving the city to the Serbs who execute 7,000 Muslims
Friday: Code of the Warrior; Five Moral Dilemmas of Modern Warfare
Code of the Warrior (French)
A warriors code defines limits on what warriors can do and not do
Warriors of today often find themselves fighting enemies who fight without rules
The degree of separation between warriors and murderers is very small
Its easy to rationalize murder if one believes their cause to be noble terrorists do not see themselves as murderers

36

No matter how one justifies their actions, one must follow the rules of war or forfeit their right to be regarded as warriors
o Are the rules of war absolute or changing? Were American guerillas in the Revolutionary War murderers?
Rules governing when an how one kills distinguishes warriors from murderers
Terrorists believe the pricks of conscience they feel are their weakness trying to steer them away from their sacred duty
The ugliness of war against an enemy considered to be subhuman can hardly be exaggerated
Psychological damage is often the result of violating what is right
Technology cheats people from the chance to absorb and reckon with the enormity of what they have done
Warriors must respect opponents
Everyone who cares about the welfare of warriors wants them to have lives worth living after the fighting is done
The warriors code guards their humanity

Five Moral Dilemmas of Modern Warfare

The distances at which lethal force can be applied is growing
o Difficult for those who press the buttons to understand death is occurring
o Makes one observant, careful, accurate
In virtual war, death is far, far away
o A warrior must keep a sharp focus on death and those you are killing to maintain honor
o Technology can make you morally numb which isnt going to make you do your job with the discrimination, care,
and sense of responsibility you need
The temptation to vengefully, indiscriminately use force is great when the other side does not play by the rules
The enemy may exploit a warriors observance of the rules
o If we violate the rules, the consequences can be extremely costly
Military is also a diplomat of American values
Recently, military action has been subjected to legal review
o This does not necessarily provide moral coverage
Ethical life is to important to leave to someone else; moral abdication should not be an option for a military member
Moral behavior is always individual behavior

David Underhill 15 Nov to 19 Nov 04 (Week 13) Liberty and Rights

Monday: 323-344
Rights and Liberty (Lucas) (323)
Military life is structured and restrictions are imposed on some liberties that civilians normally enjoy
Modern ethical thought marked by individual human rights
Liberty political guarantees respecting the freedom of individuals
Basic or natural rights are self-evident and unalienable (Jefferson)
o What are these rights and negative liberties?
o Negative liberties non-interference for the state
Still open to debate
o Whether or not political liberty is self-evident and inalienable
o Should any other human rights should be observed
On Liberty (Mill) (327)

Chapter 1: Introduction

Power can only be rightly used in order to prevent harm

Over himself, the individual is sovereign
Utility is the ultimate appeal of all ethical questions
Human liberty
o Absolute freedom of opinion
Freedom to express opinions (almost inseparable from the first)
o Freedom to pursue anything as long as it does not harm others
o Freedom to unite as long as others arent harmed or deceived

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Chapter 2: Of the Liberty of Thought and Discussion

Nobody should ever be silenced not even one dissident in a sea of people who agree
To learn a subject as well as possible, one must study it from all perspectives
Freedom of opinion and its expression are required to the mental well-being of man for four reasons:
o 1) An opinion should not be silenced because it may be correct
o 2) Though an opinion may be in error, it is probably partially correct
o 3) Unless the truth is contested, it will not be fully believed
o 4) Without other opinions, the truth may be lost

Chapter 3: Of Individuality as One of the elements of Well-Being

Actions cannot be as free as opinions

Acts which unjustifiably harm others should be controlled
o Liberty of individuals must be limited so one does not harm others
Traditions is evidence of what experience has taught one
o 1) However, ones experiences may be too narrow or misinterpreted
o 2) Also, ones interpretation may be correct but unsuitable
o 3) Conforming to custom does not develop one
Mental and moral powers are improved through use
Each persons own mode of existence is the best for him

Chapter 4: Of the Limits to the Authority of Society Over the Individual

Everyone who receives societies protections owes society something in return

Everyone is bound to observe a certain line of conduct
o 1) May not harm others
o 2) Must bear their share of the labors
Society must enforce that each person bears their share
If a person affects other, society has jurisdiction over their actions
No person entirely isolated
o Should laws govern mature individuals as well and protect them from drinking, drugs, etc?
o Acts harmful to oneself affect society too
Whenever there is a definite damage or risk of damage, the case may be governed

Chapter 5: Applications

Trade is a social act cheapness and quality are best obtained by allowing free trade (buyers must still have choice)
Liberty to sell dangerous items can be restricted in order to prevent harm
A public authority should interfere to prevent crimes and accidents
Acts which are harmful to oneself may be stopped if done in public (affecting others)
Taxation of stimulants up to where they peak is approved
A person cannot give up their freedom

Reflections on the Revolution in France (Burke) (339)

Government and liberty are both good (abstract)
Flattery corrupts both the receiver and giver
Do not congratulate too soon
The Revolution was to preserve our liberties
A constitution allow us to transfer government and policy to future generations
There may be situations in which democracy is needed, but not yet by great nations like France
o Aristotle said democracy looks strikingly like tyranny
People prefer liberty in virtuous poverty to a wealthy servitude

38

Liberty without wisdom and virtue is the greatest of all evils

Do not mirror the British constitution in France

Wednesday: 351-362
Paternalism (Dworkin) (351)
I: Paternalism interference with a persons liberty for their own good
II: Paternalistic Laws
o Breaking inflicts criminal penalties laws against dueling, laws which set maximum interest rate for loans, etc
o Law which make it difficult to do something not allowing one to defend a murder charge by saying it was done
with the victims consent
III: The class of the person affected is not always the person whose liberty is restricted
o Ex: Professionals have to be licensed (protects patients)
o Pure Paternalism those whose freedoms are restricted are also benefited
o Impure Paternalism a groups freedoms are restricted in order to help another
IV: Legislation which regulates how many hours a worker can work a week is not paternalistic
o The law is not overriding the workers judgment, but giving effect to their judgment because they couldnt do it
alone but only as a group
V: Mills objections to paternalism
o 1) Restraint is evil so those who restrain are burdened with proof
o 2) Since conduct affects oneself, one cannot fall back to the interests of the whole
o 3) One must consider the individuals own good
o 4) One cannot advance individual interests through compulsion
o 5) Therefore, one cannot use compulsion to push ones own interests
VI: Children may be interfered with because they have not fully developed their minds; hard to defer gratification
Paternalistic laws must clearly show the harm they are preventing by restraining liberties; must show they are proportional
Friday: 345-350
Human Rights (Nickel)
People have rights which prevent gov from taking certain actions against them
Parts to an appeal Rightholders and Addressees; appeal says what the rightholder is entitled to
Universal human rights have become common in the past 50 years
o Violations still occur many nations still grant few rights to citizens
The Declaration of Independence was bold rebelled against the king and was the first document to assert that all people had
certain inalienable rights
Inalienable cannot be bargained or taken away
Types of Rights
o Liberty rights freedom of
o Political rights right to vote, run for office, campaign
o Equality rights freedom from slavery, right to protection by laws
o Due process rights speedy and public trials with counsel if needed
Magna Carta was the first document to say human rights were an important consideration
United Nations designed to formulate international law
o Universal Declaration of Human Rights intl. bill of rights (no force of law, but set a standard for later legal docs)
o UN open to all peace-loving states who promise to support the UN
o Has helped human rights be recognized in most of the world

David Underhill 22 Nov to 24 Nov 04 (Week 14) Truthtelling

Monday: 395-409
Upholding the Truth (Lucas) (395)
War requires secrecy and utilizes deception
Honesty is the best policy in most situations, however
Trust is essential for organizational effectiveness

39

o The military does not allow officers to lie

Western culture believes lying to be the worst of all immoral acts
o Dante (The Inferno) put liars in the deepest layer of Hell
Individuals lie because of: performance, protection from punishment, others doing it, etc

When is the Whole Truth Attainable? (Bok) (397)

Focus is on whether or not you intend to mislead
Lie intentionally deceptive message
Grotius argued that lying to thieves, etc. was justifiable
Mental Reservation if you say something misleading but qualify it in your mind to make it true
o When a law is too strict to live by, people find loopholes
o Public authorities still swear not to hold mental reservations
Truthfulness is essential to society
Deception is coercive and gives the liar power (until one is caught)
Liars do not like to be lied to
Liars use caution around those who they have lied to
o Few lies are solitary
As you lie, it becomes lies psychologically distressing and they seem more necessary and less evil
Trust is the foundation of relationships among people
Aquinas defined three kinds of lies
o Helpful lies, Jocose lies (jestful), and malicious lies
o Only malicious lies are mortal sins (the others are much less serious)
Religious Absolutist Perspective Death kills the body, but a lie loses eternal life for the soul. To lie to save the life of
another, then, is a foolish bargain.
o Two beliefs which support this:
1) God does not allow any lies
2) God will punish all who lie
Utilitarians did not accept the absolutist perspective
o Stress the differences in severity between lies
White Lies a lie not meant to do harm (little moral importance)
o Upsetting news is usually sugar-coated, etc.
o Discretion must limit what is said
Excuses moral reasons people use to persuade themselves that lying is acceptable
o Four most common reasons used to defend lying: avoid harm, get benefits, fairness, truth
Moral justification must be made public
o Test of publicity asks which lies would be regarded as justifiable by other reasonable people
o Look at the lie from the perspective of all who it affects
o Levels of publicity
1) Look at the lie from the perspective of all who it affects (soul-searching)
2) Present the case to peers
3) (for more serious cases) Allow any to review the case none may be excluded
o Nature of publicity: 1) The public we consult should be greater than just ourselves; 2) No one may be excluded
o Limitations it is just a check
o What must be done to justify
1) Look for alternatives to lying
2) Compare moral reasons for and against lying
Remember that lying and force are similar
Also, remember that lying can spread quickly
Most lies are unjustifiable
Wednesday: CSME: 81-82, 109-114
Major Knight and Cambodia (Wrage) (81)
Knight directs B-52s to their bombing targets
One day he gets coordinates from an envelope from a special plane

40

The coordinates are inside Cambodia and he is to destroy all evidence that the planes bombed in Cambodia and pretend they
hit normal targets within Vietnam

Falsification of MV-22 Readiness Reports (Slyman) (109)

A squadron of MV-22s is having very poor readiness the aircraft are breaking quite a bit
The CO gets heat and has his job threatened for not having a higher readiness rate
The CO compels his officers and men to fudge the numbers and go around the system in order to trick the system and be able
to report 100% readiness
This came to the attention of an officer outside the squadron who tried to get the COs boss to put an end to the dishonest
practices
The squadron was reviewed by criminal investigators and charges were pressed against the marines who were guilty

David Underhill 29 Nov to 03 Dec 04 (Week 15) Justice

Monday: 363-384
The Idea of Justice (Lucas) (363)
Aristotle: Justice is a matter of treating equals with equality
Two distinct concepts (Aristotle)
o 1) Distributive Justice Appropriate distribution of societys benefits and burdens
o 2) Retributive Justice Equal administration of the law
Glaucon said justice was societys elite using their power to control society (still believed by moral realists)
We can object to the justice administered by stratified ancient societies because the criteria that determines how the benefits
and burdens were split up were irrelevant in determining what a person deserved
Leaders who are appear inconsistent or like they play favorites causes discontent within a unit important to military leaders
Justice as Fairness (Rawls) (369)
Problems of justice liberty, equality, and social differences in society
There are many overly simple formulas: Egalitarianism (equal share) and systems based on effort, merit (meritocracy), ability
and need (communism), and equal opportunity and success (laissez-faire capitalism)
o Difficult to generalize these theories which work beyond a legal system
o Often cause discontent and feelings that society is unjust
o The form of capitalism above is not the form the US uses; businesses have some restraints in the US
Above form subject to corruption by special interests
Why is someone praised highly on the basis of exercising talents endowed at birth
o Frustrates those who working harder but have less natural ability
Third part of Kants Categorical Imperative problem: lawmakers biased to the needs of themselves and their communities
Original Position an ideal moral kingdom in which each lawmaker has no knowledge about his community or own situation
o Would lead to a society that was fair
o A powerful thought experiment which can be used to evaluate our laws
o Promotes two principles: liberty and equality
Equality has two parts: public office is open to all and those best endowed and lucky will win leading to
differences in social and economic status; not unjust because this inequality could be shown to work to the
benefit of even the least advantaged
Reflective Equilibrium
o Those in the original position
o Not all inequalities are unjust (like social and economic status; see above)
Difference Principle discrimination on the basis of race (etc) is unjust because the office is not open to all and the least
advantaged is not benefited
Wednesday: 385-394
Crime and Punishment (Duff) (385)
1: Punishment, the State and the Criminal Law
Punishment burden placed on an offender by an authority
Not all breaches require punishment

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Types of Punishment
o Censure express disapproval
o Hard Treatment loss of liberties, money, etc. (criminal punishments)

2: Consequentialism and Retributivism

Consequentialism justify punishment because it helps out the whole (crime-prevention)
o Justified if benefits outweigh costs
o Prevention through deterrence, incapacitation, and reform
o Objections
Does not respect people as responsible
Treats all [citizens] like dogs because it coerces people
Retributivism only the guilty should be punished and only in proportion to their crime
o Negative interpretation the innocent may not be punished and the guilty may not be excessively punished
Requires punishment to be deserved and beneficial
o Positive interpretation the guilty must be punished as they deserve
Should be punished so they feel guilt; does not matter if the punishment achieves good outcomes
o Criminals gain an unfair advantage so punishment takes this advantage away
Objection: distorts crime (Ex: a rapist is not really taking advantage of those who obey the laws)
3: Punishment and Communication
People are imperfect; not everyone is motivated by the law incentives are needed for a working system
Punishments primary purpose should be censure
Hard-treatment punishments are justifiable as deterrents
4: Penal Theory and Sentencing
Principle of Proportionality punishments severity should be proportional to the crimes seriousness
o Helps determine relative severity
o Does not help determine an absolute standard, however
Courts need discretion in order to use punishment to further reformative aims
o Discretion could undermine proportionality
Billy Budd (Melville) (389)
Portrays a British naval ship in 1797 after recent mutinies on other ships
o Billy is highly regarded on the ship
o His superior resents Billys popularity and accuses him of plotting mutiny
o Billy hits the superior, killing him
o The crew sympathizes with Billy
o The captain holds a military tribunal and finds Billy guilty
Says striking a superior officer is against the rules and that hanging is the punishment despite the situation
o Captain viewed two ways
Unwilling to interpret the rules differently or show compassion for Billys actions
Moral hero for carrying out duty despite obvious sympathies for Billy
Loosely based on actual occurrence in US history
o Son of Sec War was a mid and tried to mutiny
o Was hung at sea
o Infuriated the Sec War did not think the proceedings were just
o Led to the founding of USNA to improve the quality of naval officers
Friday: CSME: 167-176
Walking a Fine Line (Varley and Roberts) (167)
Up until the end of the 1960s, firefighting was male-only
With affirmative action and lawsuits regarding equal opportunity, fire departments had to allow female applicants
There was heated debates over whether females should be held to a different standard and how it would affect the units
Eventually, a reasonable test uniformly applied to men and women was devised and put to use
Also, veterans had to begin testing so that a standard was enforced uniformly across the board

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David Underhill 06 Dec to 08 Dec 04 (Week 16) Stoicism

Monday: 425-448
The Enchiridion (Epictetus) (425) ready at hand (handbook)
51. There are things within your power (opinion) and beyond your power (body, property, reputation, office)
52. Desire demands one to achieve certain things
53. Objects are the merest trifles and you can bear their loss (whether they be a cup or a person)
54. Think about what you do before acting (increases safety)
55. People are upset by their own views only do not try to make others feel as you do
56. Do not be happy at others excellence; make their excellence yours (I have a handsome horse)
57. If called on by a superior, go immediately and without hesitation for everything you leave behind
58. Wish for things to happen as they do
59. Do not allow problems to affect your will
60. If troubled, figure out what you can do to overcome it
61. Possess your things as if they are not yours so that if they are taken you can say they are restored, not lost
62. Do not allow a servant to disturb you because he has no powers
63. Do not let others think you are intelligent
64. Wish for nothing outside of your power if you wish to free
65. If you can avoid taking worldly pleasures you can rule with the Gods
66. Accommodate those who suffer but do not join them (internally at least)
67. Act your role in life
68. I can derive advantage from anything that happens
69. To be free, ignore things outside of your power
70. Do not allow anything but your own opinions to provoke you
71. Daily consider death (but do not desire it)
72. Persistence earns admiration; caving in earns ridicule
73. If you pay attention to external forces, you will ruin your life
74. Hold status through maintaining honor
75. Pay the price for goods for they are to your advantage
76. If affected by something, remember how it would have affected you if it occurred to someone else
77. There is no evil nature
78. Do not speak your mind to revilers (do not criticize?)
79. Understand the perquisites and consequences of any action you take
80. Duties are measured by relations another cannot hurt you
81. Withdraw yourself from things outside your own power
82. You should be indifferent to all events because you can use all of them
83. Speak concisely
84. Do no allow pleasure to subdue you
85. Act publicly do not fear those who criticize you (because they are wrong)
86. Be courteous to your host
87. Do not try to do more than you can
88. Be careful not to hurt your mind
89. There is a measure of how many possessions you may have
90. Young women are flattered to be called mistresses; they keep their hope in their beauty and jewelry
91. Focus on the mind do not spend much time on the body
92. Those you perceive to be wrong still believe themselves to be right
93. Everything has two handles one which can be used, another which cannot
94. One cannot be superior due to wealth, eloquence, etc a person is not made of those things
95. Do not judge appearances (motive is what counts)
96. Display your principles through action
97. Do not brag about your strengths
98. A philosopher looks to oneself for all help and harm never to others
99. Interpret and analyze do not just read or listen
100.Follow your own rules as laws
Roman Stoicism (French) (437)
Note: this is a very minimal summary
Romans prided practical achievements
Romans evaluated moral theories with the gut-check method

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Stoicism we desire good but have little control over what we crave so we must reconsider what we depend on for happiness
o We always have control of our will and so can decide what makes us happy

Wednesday: 411-424; 449-454

Leaders and Moral Warriors (Lucas) (413)
Stockdale did exactly as his country ordered
He was captured and treated very inhumanely by enemies who did not believe war had rules
His country disowned him and called the war he fought for them dishonorable
Despite this, Stockdale persevered, relying on teachings by Epictetus
o He not only comforted himself but commanded those imprisoned with him through the terrible times
Stoicism school of thought which gave rise to natural law, natural lights, and moral equality
Courage Under Fire (Stockdale) (415)
Stockdale was bored studying international relations at Stanford
He entered a philosophy class mid-term and was engrossed
o From this he got his inspiration and dedication
o His professor introduced him to Epictetus
o Read all of his readings twice (through two translations); felt he had a very modern voice
o Philosophy in general and particularly that of Epictetus changed him for the better he thought
o Made him somewhat anti-organizational, though not anti-military (Roman Stoics: Life is being a soldier)
Everyone should play the game of life as best as possible but life is like a ball after the game, the ball is not what matters
When shot down, Stockdale landed in a town where he was promptly tackled (his leg was broken badly)
o He remembered Epictetus #9 and was comforted, however
o He also recalled in Korea reporters had said American POWs acted like it was every man for himself
Turned out to be selective reporting, but made him feel like a man on a mission when he became a POW
Eisenhower had created the Code of Conduct (I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners)
o The broken leg eventually healed up and turned out to be a minor setback
The camp shocked all the POWs
o However, they did not allow people to get down on themselves theyd ask for their name and say were all in it
o This was a turning point in many lives
o Epictetus said fear and other emotions were a result of your will helped Stockdale through imprisonment
Organized the camp through a tap code
o Principle 1: BACK US Dont bow, stay off the air, admit no crimes, never kiss them goodbye, and unity over self
Always negotiate for everyone, not just yourself
Resulted in Viet Congs propaganda failing
Americans used sentences with double-meanings and jokes that native western speakers would pick up on
Forced Viet Cong to use the 5% of the POWs who refused to join Stockdales organization
Never charged with courts-martial
Viet Cong tried to break their will by offering to send some home early or put the leaders in jail
o He advocated that none try to get out others quickly agreed
o He and his top men put in solitary
He never tried to preach philosophy while a prisoner
After Ho Chi Minh died he was threatened with death so he tried to kill himself
o Viet Cong save him because they have to start treating prisoners humane
o The world spotlight is now focusing on them and a mistake could ruin their chances of ending the war
A Vietnam Experience, Duty (Stockdale) (449)
He was addressing West Point (1979)
Explained a little about stoicism each has a role in life and we must play well regardless of its importance
Why a man must keep his word (Locke)
o 1) God requires it
o 2) Society requires it
o 3) Not to keep your word is dishonest (shows duty can be understood without external laws)
Kant explained the function of the human mind
o Moral obligation requires us to obey the laws we make for ourselves
o Dutys obligation is unconditional

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Obligations of an officer
o 1) Must be a moralist exemplifies good
o 2) You must be a jurist able to make decisions of right and wrong
Warning: your laws may be unpopular, but you must still uphold them
o 3) Teachers are as indispensable as leaders
o 4) Must be a steward take care of your men
o 5) Must be a philosopher to understand that morals are not always rewarded and evil is not always punished
The test of character is performance of duty and persistence of example when you know that no light is coming.

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