Arguing About War Michael Walzer

Michael Walzer is one of the world's most eminent philosophers on the subject of war and ethics. Now, for the first time since his classic "Just and Unjust Wars" was published almost three decades ago, this volume brings together his most provocative arguments about contemporary military conflicts and the ethical issues they raise.The essays in the book are divided into three sections. The first deals with issues such as humanitarian intervention, emergency ethics, and terrorism. The second consists of Walzer's responses to particular wars, including the first Gulf War, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq. And the third presents an essay in which Walzer imagines a future in which war might play a less significant part in our lives. In his introduction, Walzer reveals how his thinking has changed over time.Written during a period of intense debate over the proper use of armed force, this book gets to the heart of difficult problems and argues persuasively for a moral perspective on war.

Michael Walzer is UPS Foundation Professor of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. He is the author, editor, or coeditor of more than a dozen books, including Politics and Passion, On Toleration, The Jewish Political Tradition and 50 Years of Dissent, all published by Yale University Press.

"This book of essays has an outstanding pedigree. Michael Walzer is one of the US's foremost political theorists and social commentators... penetrating and powerful" Ben Rogers, Financial Times "Walzer has moved the concerns over just war from the periphery of political theory to the very center of our democratic dilemma." Garry Wills, New York Review of Books "Accessible and elegantly written... essential reading for scholars and practitioners." Choice "If there is such a thing as the American conscience, one of its most important custodians is Michael Walzer... A must read." Peter S. Temes, San Francisco Chronicle"