Does the End Justify the Means?
“A man who wishes to act entirely up to his professions of virtue soon meets with what destroys him . . . hence it is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity” (Machiavelli, 1505, p.71). What political necessities justify wrong doing, lies, deceit, war, and the like? Most people highly regard the commandment “thou shalt not kill” found in translations of the Bible; yet, these same people find it acceptable to kill for the purpose of self preservation. Discerning when the self is at risk, enough to justify killing, can be disputable. Society accepts devotion to a set of virtues as conditional dependent upon situations; the difficulty lies in resolving conditions acceptable for wrong doing.
Right and wrong, or in other words what is moral and immoral is defined by society. Actions, such as …show more content…
Careful consideration was given with this unprecedented decision. While the first atomic bomb was not dropped until August 6, 1945, memorandums reflecting the plan for nuclear attack are documented as early as September 18, 1944. Aide Memoire of Conversation (as cited by Kirstein, 2009) reveals President Roosevelt’s statement that “‘after mature consideration,’ Japan should endure a nuclear ‘bombardment [that] will be repeated until they surrender’” (p.806). The devastating destruction this would cause to Japan was understood. Kirstein (2009) goes on to reveal “they predicted that ‘radioactive poisons’ would sicken those ‘in the immediate vicinity’ . . . [and] atomic bombs were indeed to ‘wreck’ two urban population centers within eleven months of their prescient analysis” (p.807). With careful consideration and knowledge of destruction, the United States government made the decision to destroy large populations of Japanese
“A man who wishes to act entirely up to his professions of virtue soon meets with what destroys him . . . hence it is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity” (Machiavelli, 1505, p.71). What political necessities justify wrong doing, lies, deceit, war, and the like? Most people highly regard the commandment “thou shalt not kill” found in translations of the Bible; yet, these same people find it acceptable to kill for the purpose of self preservation. Discerning when the self is at risk, enough to justify killing, can be disputable. Society accepts devotion to a set of virtues as conditional dependent upon situations; the difficulty lies in resolving conditions acceptable for wrong doing.
Right and wrong, or in other words what is moral and immoral is defined by society. Actions, such as …show more content…
Careful consideration was given with this unprecedented decision. While the first atomic bomb was not dropped until August 6, 1945, memorandums reflecting the plan for nuclear attack are documented as early as September 18, 1944. Aide Memoire of Conversation (as cited by Kirstein, 2009) reveals President Roosevelt’s statement that “‘after mature consideration,’ Japan should endure a nuclear ‘bombardment [that] will be repeated until they surrender’” (p.806). The devastating destruction this would cause to Japan was understood. Kirstein (2009) goes on to reveal “they predicted that ‘radioactive poisons’ would sicken those ‘in the immediate vicinity’ . . . [and] atomic bombs were indeed to ‘wreck’ two urban population centers within eleven months of their prescient analysis” (p.807). With careful consideration and knowledge of destruction, the United States government made the decision to destroy large populations of Japanese