Military Ethics

1
Military Ethics
2
Overview

• Group Exercise on Values
• Ethics Defined
• Sources of Ethics
• Case Studies

3
Exercise
4
Exercise Values
It was customary in some German Concentration
camps to release a woman if she became pregnant.

• A married woman in a concentration camp faces
  eventual death. She makes a decision to attempt
  to become pregnant by one of the German guards.
  Measure her decision against your value system,
  and go stand by the sign that reflects your
  position.
• A married woman in a concentration camp has four
  children and a husband safe in Berlin asking her
  to escape. She decides to become pregnant by a
  guard.

5
Exercise Values

• An elderly gentleman expressed his desire that
  should a heart transplant be needed by someone at
  the time of the elderly mans death, his heart be
  used for transplant. The elder gentleman is now
  near death and is being sustained in life by a
  breathing apparatus. His is unconscious and,
  according to all possible medical predications,
  has only a few days to live. A young man of 35
  is in need of a heart transplant within 24 hours
  to be able to live. The doctors and the family
  of the elderly man decided to kill him painlessly
  with a drug in order for the transplant to be
  possible.
• Young people should be able to practice birth
  control or get abortions without parental
  knowledge.

6
Exercise Values

• Lt Col Oliver North had a deep conviction that
  aid to the Contras was vital to this countrys
  national interests. After Congress passed a law
  making it illegal to provide aid (through
  appropriated funds) to the Contras, North chose
  to deliberately mislead Congress regarding some
  of his activities. When U.S. national security
  is a stake, it is occasionally acceptable that
  DoD members provide Congress with false or no
  information about classified projects, even if
  such activities run counter to the spirit, in not
  the letter, of the law.
• There should be be no restrictions on visits by
  members of the opposite sex in the dormitory
  rooms.

7
Exercise Values

• The use of drugs should be an individual
  decision, not one made by society.
• Loyalty is more important then integrity.
• Women should be allowed to fight in combat in
  defense of their country.
• Sexual orientation should have no bearing in
  selection or promotion for any job.
• Ones career should come before ones family.

8
Exercise Values

• Affirmative action should be abolished
• Race/gender should be an admissions criteria for
  graduate school.
• Abortions are akin to murder.
• The use of drugs should be an individual
  decision, not one made by society.
• There should be no separation of church and
  state.
• The ends sometimes justifies the means.

9
Ethics

• Military ethics (or ethics in general) is
  about our learning what is good and true, and
  then having the courage to do and be what and who
  we ought to
• --Dr. James Toner,
  Military or Ethics

10
Sources of Ethics

• Customs
• Rules
• Goals
• Circumstances

11
Dr Toners Tools for Ethical Decision
The 3 Os The 3 Rs OWING
RULES ORDERING RESULTS OUGHTING
REALITY The 3 Ps The 3 Ds PRINCIPLE
DISCERN THE TRUTH PURPOSE
DECLARE THE TRUTH PEOPLE
DO(act on the truth)
12

• Ethics, too, are nothing but
• reverence for life
• Albert Schweitzer