Chapter 12 Questions

. A war that involves actual fighting is known as

a hot war.

a cold war.

a war simpliciter.

none of the above

. The view that moral considerations do not apply to war is known as

jus ad bellum.

antiwar pacifism.

just war theory.

moral nihilism.

. Just war theory's principle of military necessity belongs to

jus in bello.

jus ad bellum.

moral nihilism.

all of the above

. Nagel thinks that the core of the absolutist position is that

human persons have a right to life.

it is permissible to harm as a foreseen but unintended consequence of action.

the ends justify the means.

the hostility should be directed at its true object.

. Nagel clarifies that absolutism is the view that we should

prevent murder at all costs

avoid murder at all costs

only sometimes prevent murder

only sometimes avoid murder

. Since Nagel thinks there can be genuine moral dilemmas, he denies the moral principle that

can implies should.

can implies ought.

ought implies can.

ought implies should.

. Which of the following is not one of the four main excuses for terrorism that Michael Walzer discusses?

Terrorism is a form of freedom of speech.

Terrorism is a last resort.

Terrorism benefits oppressed groups.

All political activity is terroristic.

. In responding to terrorism, says Walzer, it is particularly important that

we make an effort to convince the terrorists that they are acting wrongly.

we avoid harming terrorists to the same extent that we would avoid harming innocent civilians.

we attack the lower-ranking terrorists first.

we do not repeat the wrongs of terrorism in the process.

. The "double standard" with which states and nonstate entities are judged, according to Andrew Valls, is that

violence by nonstate entities is more easily accepted than state violence.

state violence is treated differently from nonmilitary action by the state (e.g., economic sanctions).

state violence is more easily accepted than violence by nonstate entities.

state violence is evaluated via just war theory, but violence by nonstate entities is evaluated via consequentialism.

. According to Valls, a just cause for political violence is usually

defensive.

offensive.

territorial.

economically motivated.

. What kind of consequentialist theory does Dershowitz think can justify terrorism in certain extreme particular cases?

act-based deontology

rule-based hedonism

rule utilitarianism

act utilitarianism

. Which of the following is a view that Dershowitz argues for?

Torture is permissible in the "ticking bomb" case.

No democratic society should allow public officials to engage in illegal actions "off the books."

"Torture warrants" should be part of a legal system regulating the practice of torture.

all of the above

. Marcia Baron argues that the artificiality of ticking bomb cases is problematic because

the artificial assumptions are, in fact, empirical claims that are central to the debate.

all artificial thought experiments are philosophically useless.

it leads us to believe that torture is always permissible.

all of the above

. One problem with treating the ticking bomb case as involving only a single instance of torture, according to Baron, is that

justifying one instance of torture requires justifying the practice of torture.

it is virtually impossible for torture to be limited to just one instance.

both A and B

neither A nor B

. Jus in bello is that part of just war theory that sets forth moral requirements for going to war.

True

False

. Thomas Nagel accepts the difference between doing and allowing.

True

False

. Nagel thinks that in cases of conflict between utilitarian and absolutist moral reasons, absolutist reasons should always win out.

True

False

. On the form of absolutism Nagel defends, pacifism is the only permissible course of action in warfare.

True

False

. Michael Walzer thinks that, if terrorists complain of oppression, addressing that oppression would only confirm the effectiveness of their tactics.

True

False

. Walzer argues that terrorism is rarely, if ever, truly a last resort.

True

False

. According to Valls, the right to self-determination can justify political violence for states but not for nonstate actors.

True

False

. According to Dershowitz, act utilitarianism could even justify some acts of terrorism.

True

False

. In Dershowitz's view, all cases of torture should be illegal, though the law should allow for the exoneration of individuals who can morally justify their actions.

True

False

. Baron discusses her hypothetical case of catastrophe-preventing rape to show that rape is also a form of torture.

True

False

. The textbook defines a(n)_________ as a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nation.

. The textbook defines _________ as activities involving the infliction of intense pain on a victim with the aim of punishing, coercing, or deriving sadistic satisfaction.

. Nagel thinks that absolutism does not entail that one ignore the _________ of one's actions.

. Nagel thinks that there are genuine moral _________ when utilitarian and absolutist considerations conflict.

. According to Walzer, the idea that all politics is really terrorism betrays our _________ about political life

. The best ways of responding to terrorism, says Walzer, involve retaliation and _________.

. Andrew Valls defines _________ as violence committed by nonstate actors against persons or property for political purposes.

. Valls mentions the distinction between using violence to target innocent civilians and using violence merely with the knowledge that innocent civilians would be harmed as a side effect. This distinction corresponds to the principle of _________, and Valls argues that if the principle is rejected, then terrorism and war will seem even more similar.

. Dershowitz mentions three values that are pitted against each other when considering torture, the first of which is the safety and security of a nation's _________.

. Marcia Baron says, "The ticking time bomb hypothetical is marred by the very feature that is supposed to make it so compelling: that there is no _________ to lose."

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