ethics

Ethics not (military) ethos

Former education minister Robert Goodwill has been tasked with drawing up a report for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) on the benefits of ‘military ethos’ in schools. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has suggested this could include ‘military academies’ in disadvantaged areas. We consider the ethics of imposing an ethos from outside of education, especially when it serves interests at odds with the best interests of young people.

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From the classroom to the frontline – schools must be careful what they teach kids about the army

This article by Jonathan Parry. Lecturer in Global Ethics at the University of Birmingham, explores the dangers involved in miltary activity in schools and for the youngest recruits. It emphasises the moral risks and the 'moral exploitation' involved.

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Drone Wars: Pilots reveal debilitating stress beyond virtual battlefield

"To extinguish a person's life is a very personal thing. While physically we don't experience the five senses when we engage a target — unlike [how] an infantryman might — in my experience, the emotional impact on the operator is equal."

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Confessions of a Drone Warrior

Killing with drones and PTSD

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I wept as I comforted our soldiers maimed in Iraq’: How could I tell them Blair’s ‘just war’ was an illusion?

"We can best pay tribute to their sacrifices by ensuring that in the future no British sailor, soldier, Marine or airman is asked to lay down their life except for the most urgent and honourable of causes."

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