Is The War Justified?

The comments I’ve been getting today have caused me to think some more about the concept of a just war. I’ve always believed that there is such a thing and that the war we are prosecuting in Iraq (and before it, in Afghanistan) is acceptable as such. But is it?

A little background about me first. I am a firm believer in the death penalty, that there is a valid use for military power, and that the Second Amendment is one of the most critical in the Bill of Rights. I believe that the deterrence created by all three of these beliefs has ultimately saved more lives by an order of magnitude than they have taken.

But I also believe that every life is absolutely sacred. I will never be governor in any state because while I believe in the death penalty, I don’t want to be that final judge of who lives and who dies. It’s just not my place in life to decide. Some people deserve to die for their crimes. My conscience just would not allow me to decide who deserves it.

I never joined the military for the same reason. I don’t believe that I could knowingly commit an act that would result in someone else losing their life. I am greatly appreciative of those men and women who can commit that action, in many ways they are better and stronger than I.

And one of my favorite past-times is to exercise my Second Amendment right to annihilate a paper target. The controlled power and fury of a handgun is an incredible rush, but again it is something I don’t think I could ever turn on another human being.

Some might argue that such contradictions are proof that I don’t have very strong principles. I don’t think that that’s true. My beliefs are very strong having been solidified through countless reexaminations. I believe that we all have opposing beliefs, it’s just that most people aren’t intellectually honest enough to admit to them.

Several of my posts in the past have been about different tools and techniques that could be used to help minimize loss of life in this conflict and in future ones. Anything that can protect the sanctity of a human life cannot be bad.

But sometimes, the sacrifice of one person’s life may the catalyst for saving thousands upon thousands of other lives. Is one life more important than a thousand? Never. I don’t care whose life that one is. But there is a steep burden of proof to convince me that even one person needs to die, for any reason.

In the case of Saddam Hussein, the proof was there. He has killed thousands of his own people, simply because they had the audacity to disagree with him. He is actively and publicly supporting the state sanctioned murder of Israelis (Never mind the details of the Israeli/Palestinian issue. Iraq has paid for successful suicide attacks on Israeli citizens. Period. Even Saddam admits it. And it is wrong.). The list of atrocities committed by the man is incredible. Would his death save thousands of other people’s lives? Yes.

So I have come to the idea that a war to eliminate Saddam Hussein is justified. The unfortunate part is that we cannot simply eliminate the man, we must eliminate his entire legacy in Iraq. And to do so, more people will die.

But every soldier in this fight, Iraqi or coalition, has to make a decision about how many people die; every member of the coalition military has already made theirs. They chose to volunteer for service. They understand that they have no bone to pick with anyone other than the key members of Saddam’s regime. As a result, we have let POWs go home. As a result, we have provided humanitarian assistance to Iraqi citizens. And as a result, we have left ourselves open to unethical methods of warfare – for which we have paid a price in blood.

But let us not forget that the Iraqi soldiers have a decision to make also. Theirs may be complicated by the fedayeen and the secret police, but they still have a decision. They can choose to melt away, as many of the first units we encountered did. They can choose to not fight, as many of the POWs have done. They can choose. Their choices just may be between evil and sadistic. Their choice may be between putting their life at serious risk on the front line (where they can choose not to kill anyone, but they may be killed despite their good intentions) or guaranteeing the death of their families. One choice leaves open a glimmer of hope; the other slams the door closed. It’s not much a choice, but a person of good conscience could find a way to make the best of it.

Any fight is the result of choices, whether you’re a child or a nation. Once it has been decided that a fight will occur, one has to set a goal for the battle. In Iraq, the Administration did just that. They chose to fight for regime change, the elimination of WMD, and for humanitarian aid. The first goal is sufficient justification for the nation to decide to take Saddam’s life as a regime change will save thousands of Iraqi lives (not to mention other people of the world). The other two goals are merely wonderful side benefits of the war.

I believe that we are fighting a just fight in Iraq. We have a clearly defined goal designed to ultimately save human lives. We have men and women sacrificing, sometimes making the ultimate sacrifice, to ensure that we are achieving our goal with a minimal number of deaths. Our military is conducting itself in a way that makes the pacifist in me proud.