Description

The “Just War” Theory: Application to United States and Israeli Militarism

War is state-sponsored violence. The classical “just war theory” (JWT) attempted to show the limits that justice theory impose on this activity. JWT is widely used. For example, President Barack Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize address did so, but the restraints it puts on warring are rarely understood. The JWT provides criteria to critique the militarism of the United States and Israel and shows how militaristic assumptions curtail creative diplomacy, thus imperiling the security of both nations, as well as international peace more broadly.

war, peace-making, policing paradigm, just war theory, militarism, United States, Israel

Citation: Social Justice Vol. 37, Nos. 2-3 (2010-11): 61-72.