Assignment 10: What is it good for?

**This is late because my laptop (the only computer in my house) has been in New York since the saturday before last and I just got it today... I tried to blog on my phone but it wouldn't let me (I emailed you and you said it was OK)**

Is there a time for war?

   Certainly. When more lives are at risk than those that will be put on the line, then war is okay. To put it more simply, if it saves more lives than it takes, then yes. War over politics though is not okay.

If there is a time, is it morally right and just or is is it the lesser of two evils?

   It is the lesser of the two evils. It is not morally right and I would more likely be a peace advocate than the opposite, but I also know that sometimes it cannot be avoided. The only time is, like I said before, if going to war saves more lives than the actual war takes.

If there isn't a time, why not?

   See previous answer.

Are there certain times when countries have a responsibility to go to war?

   This is tricky. If it is necessary in order to save lives, then it is okay to go to war. But you cannot always predict the unpredictable, so sometimes you cannot tell if it will save lives or not-but you have to take the chance. It is a country's responsibility to go to war if 1. the majority of the country advocates it and 2. if they predict it will save lives.

Are there any alternatives? Could they be more effective or less effective?

    In a perfect world, the alternative would be talking it out. But this doesn't always work. I feel like if there were any better alternatives, we would know of them. But everything else has failed, and even war fails most of the time.