Morality of War
Morality of War
There are nine conditions under which fighting a war can be moral. Although, that does not mean that wars are moral, especially not any of the wars this country has engaged itself in. War seems to be the most destructive type of human interaction. No other medium allows people to kill each other in such massive numbers or to cause immense suffering. Wars often take years to develop and can last for an undetermined amount of years. The effects can reverberate for decades if not centuries. For these reasons, I believe that a nation’s foreign policy should be based on moral principles. To the average person in society today, however, the prospect of war is often very upsetting. People don't feel like they are in control of their own destinies and fear that the decisions of far away political leaders will take them all to the brink of destruction. These insecurities come from a stand point made much more likely in a world of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. Thus, a nation should be able to make an honest and sincere attempt to ground its foreign policies in moral principles. Even President Washington thought of morality to be an “indispensable support” of political prosperity. As he stated in his Farewell Address in 1796, “And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.” Although Washington was referring to the future policies that would be established within this nation [especially those dealing with religious ties], his statement can also be applied to foreign political issues. So it is not impossible to apply morality in foreign affairs nor is it wrong; on the contrary, I see it beneficial for both countries dealing with foreign problems, such as war. It is
There are nine conditions under which fighting a war can be moral. Although, that does not mean that wars are moral, especially not any of the wars this country has engaged itself in. War seems to be the most destructive type of human interaction. No other medium allows people to kill each other in such massive numbers or to cause immense suffering. Wars often take years to develop and can last for an undetermined amount of years. The effects can reverberate for decades if not centuries. For these reasons, I believe that a nation’s foreign policy should be based on moral principles. To the average person in society today, however, the prospect of war is often very upsetting. People don't feel like they are in control of their own destinies and fear that the decisions of far away political leaders will take them all to the brink of destruction. These insecurities come from a stand point made much more likely in a world of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. Thus, a nation should be able to make an honest and sincere attempt to ground its foreign policies in moral principles. Even President Washington thought of morality to be an “indispensable support” of political prosperity. As he stated in his Farewell Address in 1796, “And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.” Although Washington was referring to the future policies that would be established within this nation [especially those dealing with religious ties], his statement can also be applied to foreign political issues. So it is not impossible to apply morality in foreign affairs nor is it wrong; on the contrary, I see it beneficial for both countries dealing with foreign problems, such as war. It is