Killing in the Military Justified
Holly DeSantis
PHI:208 Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Cora Moore
February 20, 2016 Killing in the Military Justified
When a person decides to join the military, they are not only making the superior choice to protect and serve their country, and it is far greater than that. What most people don’t consider is that the individual who is signing up to put their life on the line so we can enjoy the freedom we have come to know and love for their country also is putting themselves in a problematic situation where their moral ethics and character come into question. When a soldier is out on the battlefield, they are faced with a choice whether to follow orders by potentially taking a potential threats life or not …show more content…
Moral Virtues make up what we call character (Aristotle, 1931). Whether or not someone is right or wrong character depends on many things that can contribute to whether you think something is good or bad. Aristotle says good or bad character it is produced by habituation. When we do certain things depending on how we act and how we get it done, make up our character. An excellent example of this is when someone decides to make that step and sign up for the army. In basic training, you learn in detail the seven core values of being a soldier. Some of these values are loyalty, respect, integrity and honor. These values help build the character of that soldier to live by on and off the …show more content…
In the article Did Marine A Do Wrong? Simpson goes on to tell about a Marine who was convicted of murder because he shot him at close range. He goes on to mention that he feels like although war is collective, each soldier can feel rage and hatred which can affect them on the battlefield. According to Jeff McMahan argues that conditions in a war still doesn’t give someone the right to kill people and it morally wrong. He goes on to state that the intentions also can affect a just combatants reason for killing the innocent or another soldier. Both Simpson and McMahan agree that killing in war can be unjust because both sides are fighting what they feel is justified. For example that most recent ISIS bombings that were on the news the last few months. Although I do not agree, ISIS felt what they were fighting for was justified by what they believe in not just collectively, but also individually even if that meant taking lives of many innocent people. In their eyes, they were basing their thoughts on a deontological approach rather than questions whether it was right or wrong. However, looking at it from a soldier fighting against them, they are to take out potential threats, and actual threats, which although seems justified because they are killing someone that can do us harm. When it comes to self-defense both Simpson and McMahan agree that a soldier can
Holly DeSantis
PHI:208 Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Cora Moore
February 20, 2016 Killing in the Military Justified
When a person decides to join the military, they are not only making the superior choice to protect and serve their country, and it is far greater than that. What most people don’t consider is that the individual who is signing up to put their life on the line so we can enjoy the freedom we have come to know and love for their country also is putting themselves in a problematic situation where their moral ethics and character come into question. When a soldier is out on the battlefield, they are faced with a choice whether to follow orders by potentially taking a potential threats life or not …show more content…
Moral Virtues make up what we call character (Aristotle, 1931). Whether or not someone is right or wrong character depends on many things that can contribute to whether you think something is good or bad. Aristotle says good or bad character it is produced by habituation. When we do certain things depending on how we act and how we get it done, make up our character. An excellent example of this is when someone decides to make that step and sign up for the army. In basic training, you learn in detail the seven core values of being a soldier. Some of these values are loyalty, respect, integrity and honor. These values help build the character of that soldier to live by on and off the …show more content…
In the article Did Marine A Do Wrong? Simpson goes on to tell about a Marine who was convicted of murder because he shot him at close range. He goes on to mention that he feels like although war is collective, each soldier can feel rage and hatred which can affect them on the battlefield. According to Jeff McMahan argues that conditions in a war still doesn’t give someone the right to kill people and it morally wrong. He goes on to state that the intentions also can affect a just combatants reason for killing the innocent or another soldier. Both Simpson and McMahan agree that killing in war can be unjust because both sides are fighting what they feel is justified. For example that most recent ISIS bombings that were on the news the last few months. Although I do not agree, ISIS felt what they were fighting for was justified by what they believe in not just collectively, but also individually even if that meant taking lives of many innocent people. In their eyes, they were basing their thoughts on a deontological approach rather than questions whether it was right or wrong. However, looking at it from a soldier fighting against them, they are to take out potential threats, and actual threats, which although seems justified because they are killing someone that can do us harm. When it comes to self-defense both Simpson and McMahan agree that a soldier can