Overview

When is it right to go to war? The most persuasive answer to this question has always been 'in self-defense'. In a penetrating new analysis, bringing together moral philosophy, political science, and law, David Rodin shows what's wrong with this answer. He proposes a comprehensive new theory of the right of self-defense which resolves many of the perplexing questions that have dogged both jurists and moral philosophers. By applying the theory of self-defense to international relations, Rodin produces a far-reaching critique of the canonical Just War theory. The simple analogy between self-defense and national defense - between the individual and the state - needs to be fundamentally rethought, and with it many of the basic elements of international law and the ethics of international relations.

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required reading for anyone with a reflective interest in these issues. It is clearly and shrewdly argued throughout, insightful, provocative, and elegantly written. Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews ... important and imaginative study ... Rodin's elegant trashing of the just-war tradition will provoke a wide response. Paul Cornish, Times Higher Education Supplement David Rodin argues brilliantly that individual self-defence cannot provide a morally coherent justification for national-defense , and in the process offers a systematic rejection of the just-war tradition. Paul Cornish, Times Higher Education Supplement Rodin's challenges are chilling reminders that use of armed force even in presumed self-defense can be morally problematic. Journal of Peace Research ... this well-written book raises an immense number of problematic and important questions and there is much to learn from it. Journal of Peace Research In dialectical and thorough fashion, Rodin criticizes a number of traditional justifications for national defense. Journal of Peace Research Rodin's discussion of war and of self-defence seeks to drive a wedge between the two ideas. The first part of the book presents a robust account of the moral justification for killing in self-defence. The second part argues, convincingly in my view, that waging war cannot be morally justified as a form of self-defence. Richard Norman, Journal of Applied Philosophy [Rodin's] critique of the rights-based theory of war as self-defence should be required reading for anyone concerned with questions about the morality of war. And in the current state of the world, that ought to mean everyone. Richard Norman, Journal of Applied Philosophy Nothing could be more timely ... than a careful reconsideration of the relation between war and the self-defense of citizens. David Rodin's War and Self-Defense is everything such a book should be: a careful and learned exploration of the topic that resolves some long-standing issues while raising new questions and advancing new proposals for how to think about war. A dispiriting level of confusion is often evident in both popular and philosophical-legal thought on the justice of war, he remarks midway through his study (p. 126). Rodin's is just the sort of work we need to address this problem. It will be a starting point for discussion of these topics in the future. Cheyney C. Ryan, Ethics and International Affairs ... illuminating and provocative. Jeff McMahan, Ethics and International Affairs In War and Self-Defense David Rodin uncovers many flaws of current thinking about war. Rodin correctly points out that the justification of national self-defense goes beyond the justification of individual self-defense. He accurately rejects the standard notion of moral symmetry--the accepted view that both just and unjust warriors can permissibly kill enemies as long as they observe the laws of war. Rodin vindicates the right view: if a war is unjust, each and every injury caused by the unjust warrior is a criminal act. There are no morally justified killings by those who fight unjust wars. Further, Rodin rightly rejects various holistic theories of self-defense. Last but not least, he correctly denounces ... the idea that tyrannical governments are worth defending against interventions aimed at deposing them because they are protected by the principle of sovereignty. Fernando R. Teson, Ethics and International Affairs At both the individual and the national level, Rodin puts forward a powerful case for radically rethinking some long-standing beliefs. Peace News ... if you want an original, hugely intelligent ... understanding of the just war principle, with fascinating spins on war guilt and when it is right to kill an enemy ... turn to David Rodin's War and Self-Defense. Dominick Donald, The Guardian ... remarkable and original. Bernard Williams, in the Foreword One of the few moral ideas about warfare that are generally agreed is that the use of armed force can be justified in the cause of national self-defence. This aspect of traditional Just War doctrine is widely accepted by public opinion and is enshrined in international law, including the Charter of the United Nations. David Rodin's remarkable and original book mounts a powerful attack on this idea ... David Rodin's book demands serious and uncomfortable thought not only about the specific question of national self-defence and its morality, but about the role of moral ideas in international conflict altogether. Bernard Williams, in the Foreword

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