10nfl1-Nukes-Cover
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| Deterrence immoral DETERRENCE IS IMMORAL. Nuclear Arms as a Philosophical and Moral Issue. Robert P. Churchill Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 469, Nuclear Armament and Disarmament (Sep, 1983), pp. 46-57. Published by Sage Publications, Inc. in association with the American Academy of Political and Social Science Stable URL http://www.jstor.org/stable/1044534 The immorality of nuclear deterrence lies in the threat itself, not in its present or even likely consequences. Paul Ramsey also recognizes this point "Whatever is wrong to do is wrong to threaten, if the latter means 'means to do. If counter-population warfare is murder, then counter-population deterrence threats are murderous Since it would be wrong to retaliate, and through moral intuition we know it to be wrong, then it cannot be right for us to intend to do it. Indeed moral systems depend upon some version of the so-called wrongful intentions principle to intend to do what one knows to be wrong is itself wrong The necessity of this principle is obvious from reflection about our moral experience and is not denied by any major system of morality. Download 1.23 Mb. Share with your friends:
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