To do battle
The Ethics of War
By AJ Coates
Manchester University Press 1997
In the `Ethics of War' AJ Coates describes four
approaches to war: realism, which rejects notions of
morality and sees war as a means to maintain the
balance of power in international relations;
militarism, which regards war as a creative and
expressive act and approaches it with enthusiasm;
pacifism, which rejects any use of war, and advocates
only non-violent resistance; and just war theory, for
which war is permissable, but only as an instrument of
peace.
The principles which must be satisfied in just war
thinking include: legitimate authority, just cause,
proportionality, last resort, prospect of success,
noncombatant immunity, and war must be a form of
peacemaking.
Coates uses this framework for various purposes, for
example defending the sinking of the Belgrano, British
action in the Falklands/Malvinas, and British and US
action in the Gulf war. Of more interest is how he uses
it to oppose revolutionary action in general, and
revolutionary struggle in Ireland in particular.
Coates argues that modern revolutionary ideology is
overwhelmingly militaristic. It is enthusiastic for
war, regarding it as an expressive, creative activity.
Millions have paid with their lives as a consequence,
he claims.
Coates equates class struggle with an anti-political
militarist outlook, and dismisses the concept of
structural or institutional violence, attributing to it
a totalising effect on war. Finally, he denies
legitimate authority to most revolutionary action,
insisting on the public monopoly of force.
Coates' view of the war in Ireland relies heavly on
Ruth Dudley Edwards ``The Triumph of Failure''.
Accordingly he views 1916 as the vanguard action of a
revolutionary minority acting without popular support,
and regards Pearse's attitude to blood sacrifice as
typical of the militarist view of war as an expressive
rather than instrumental activity. Coates disapproves
equally of today's republicians: the 1981 hunger
strikes were an attempt by ``terrorists'' to claim
legitimate authority, and affirm their right to war and
the lawfulness of their actions.
Finally, while he accepts that the IRA is rooted in its
community, with a complex web of support, he attributes
this to an ambivalence about violence in the
nationalist community which denounces IRA violence, but
accepts the ``physical force'' tradition from which they
spring.
Coates makes assumptions about morality which are never
openly acknowledged. He thus presents his ideological
position as natural and universal. But morality is
neither universal nor natural. Morality is a set of
standards by which a group or community decides to
regulate its behaviour. ``Decides'' is crucial here: who
decides? for whom? what interests are served?.
Coates decides that the routine deaths caused
systematically by capitalism and imperialism are a
tolerable evil, while the deaths caused through
resistance and revolution are intolerable. He denies
legitimate authority to revolutionary action, there is
a public monopoly of the use of power, legitimate
authority and coercive power are vested in a government
on behalf of the political community over which it
rules.
The problems with this are obvious: what community? who
belongs to it? who defines it? control of the
definition is decisive.
Once community is defined, how are power and authority
to be allocated? This question pits democracy against
other methods of allocating power: monarchy,
dictatorship, majoritarianism, etc. Nationalism, which
obscures other fundemental categories in the idea of
nation, tends towards majoritarianism, republicanism,
which rests on the ideas of equality, fraternity,
liberty, tends towards democracy.
Coates' morality inevitably favours the political and
economic system from which it springs, capitalism and
imperialism. For Irish republicans, whose objective
remains the socialist republic, our system of values
will follow from our political analysis, whose tools
are those of political economy, power, class.
Don't waste time reading this book; consider, instead,
three connected ideas found in it: war and politics
are continuous, different only in methodology. While
continuing to wage war ``we must also make it easy for
the enemy to accept defeat. We must tempt as well as
compel'' (Churchill). A `negotiated peace' is often a
euphemistic description of a coercive or imposed peace.
(Coates) Interesting?
By `No Other Law'
A colourful world of wildlife
Wildlife
By Don Conroy and Chris Wilson
Mentor Press
Price £9.99
This is a beautiful book and anyone who has an interest
in the environment and nature and who has kids should
have a copy.
It is a very colourful book; it has beautiful colour
photos of the animals, birds and insects that are
examined in it and it has loads of activities that
young readers can do.
That makes it a must for schools.
A really nice touch is the way the authors use quotes
from people to reinforce the view that the environment
and the world we live in does not belong to us human
beings; that it belongs to the wildlife and nature
equally.
It is that holistic attitude to the world that we
should pass on to the next generation. We need to teach
them to respect our world.
That sense of respecting the world and nature was
summed up in the quotes from a Fr Jan Grzesica, who I
know absolutely nothing about and Chief Seattle.
Grzesica said, ``The exceptional position of man in the
world of creation gives him no excuse for treating the
world of nature in an absolute and irresponsible way''.
While Chief Seattle said ``you must teach the children
that the world is sacred''.
However, the one person I do know of and who is quoted
in the book is Richard Branson who says, ``we simply
have to stop taking the earth for granted. It is, after
all, the only home we've got''. I just can't deal with
the idea of Branson - who for me epitomises that
anti-people brand of market-led Thatcherite capitalism
that puts money and profits before people - should be
given any credence whatsoever in a book like this.
That said, the information about wildlife places to
visit is really useful but should have ``crossed the
border'' as it is only areas of natural beauty in the 26
Counties that are listed. Agus ba mhaith liom cuid eile
gaelige a fheiceil sa leabhar.
By Peadar Whelan
![[An Phoblacht]](http://republican-news.org/graphics/title_gifs/aprn.gif)