Morality In The Military Research Paper

Over the past thirteen days I have been challenged to look at airpower and its influence on national security more closely. As a civilian employee with no experience as a uniformed Airman this has proven to be a daunting task. From examining ways of maintaining air superiority to discussing the principles of war and how they have evolved from conflict to conflict has been a humbling experience and helped me to realize my work is meaningful and interrelated to the Air Forces ‘primary mission, “to fly, fight and win in air, space and cyberspace”.1 In this final paper I will discuss, “the relationship between strategy and morality when planning for the application of combat power to include a discussion on principles of both jus in bello and …show more content…
military men and women are strictly governed by the treaties of the Geneva Convention in battle on foreign soil. The purpose and overarching intent of the Geneva Convention is, “to provide minimum protections, standards of humane treatment, and fundamental guarantees of respect to individuals who become victims of armed conflicts”.5 Although, many disagree with this doctrine and believe that during war the intent is for one to stay alive and by any means necessary. Some disagree that presumably non-combative and innocent individuals should be spared during war. Instead they believe that anyone not on the side of the U.S. military is automatically an enemy and a threat to ones life. In addition to the likes of the Geneva Convention, is the Joint Publication 1, Doctrine for the Armed Forces of the United States. As a required reading in the self paced Warfare Studies course I learned this publication, “explicitly states, commanders at all levels must: ensure their forces operate in accordance with the ―law of war, often called the ―law of armed conflict. The law of war is international law that regulates the conduct of armed hostilities, and is binding on the United States and its individual citizens”.6 This passage reintegrates the importance for commanders and high ranking officials to always consider the laws of war when strategizing airpower support. It is not only the responsibility of leadership but also that of the individual warfighter to ensure their …show more content…
In the article titled, Jus Post Bellum author Gary Bass focuses on the urgency to relate just post bellum to the Just War Theory. The author references previous U.S. presidents, George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter to support the notion that jus post bellum holds equal important to jus in bellum. Bass states, “In their different ways, both presidents imply that in order for a state to wage a just war, it must demonstrate not only that it went to war for good reasons, but also that its postwar conduct was consistent with those ends: helping to make the region more stable and secure, and leaving the affected populations less subject to violence and oppression”.7 Often times during conversations among peers and subordinates alike I have been confronted with the ideology that when war has officially ended “we” no longer have and obligation to the land. More often than not I am astonished and saddened at callus remarks such as, we should just “pull out” and let “them” figure it out. When the U.S. makes the decision to invade a foreign land it is her responsibility as a leading world power to ensure the job is done both accurately and completely. If we irresponsibly chose to leave the land with loose ends there is the potential for radical extremist to capitalize on the recovering nations vulnerability and defeats the purpose