Mendus, Sue (2012) Professor Waldron Goes to Washington. Criminal Law and Philosophy. DOI: 10.1007/s11572-012-9167-8. pp. 1-12. ISSN 1871-9791
Abstract
In Torture, Terror and Trade-Offs: Philosophy for the White House Jeremy Waldron asks how moral philosophy can illuminate real life political problems. He argues that moral philosophers should remind politicians of the importance of adhering to moral principle, and he also argues that some moral principles are absolute and exceptionless. Thus, he is very critical of those philosophers who, post 9/11, were willing to condone the use of torture. In this article I discuss and criticize Waldron’s absolutism. In particular, I claim that the arguments he offers in support of it are either dependent on religious conviction or support only rule utilitarianism, not absolutism. Additionally, I argue that the character of politics is such that it is both undesirable and morally irresponsible for politicians to adopt the absolutist approach favoured by Waldron. We have reason to be glad that Professor Waldron does not go to Washington.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Keywords: | absolutism, dirty hands, duties of office, realism, utilitarianism |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Social Sciences (York) > Politics (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 19 Feb 2013 15:02 |
Last Modified: | 21 Jan 2025 17:16 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s11572-012-9167-8 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s11572-012-9167-8 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:74980 |
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Filename: CLPH_S_12_00046_1_.pdf
Description: Professor Waldron goes to Washington