The Moral Warrior: Ethics and Service in the U.S. Military

by Martin L. Cook

For the first time in history, the capabilities of the U.S. military far outstrip those of any potential rival, either singly or collectively, and this reality raises fundamental questions about its role, nature, and conduct. The Moral Warrior explores a wide range of ethical issues regarding the nature and purpose of voluntary military service, the moral meaning of the unique military power of the United States in the contemporary world, and the moral challenges posed by the "war" on terrorism.

Genres: Philosophy

Paperback

First published March 4, 2004

Reviews

[Seth Sowalskie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Moral Warrior is a thoughtful, if somewhat dated and repetitive, look at both how just war theory should influence our thinking on two major areas. First, it discusses how American soldiers and officers ought to think about their military service and commitment in light of just war theory. Second, Cook attempts to use just war theory to illuminate recent issues the American military has had to face, such as the war on terror, strategic bombing, and humanitarian efforts. It is important to note that the book is mostly a collection of previously-published essays by the author, Martin L. Cook, that have been modified and loosely structured in an attempt to produce a cohesive narrative, with only two original chapters (Chapter 1 and Chapter 6). In this review, I will address the introduction and two main parts of the book.

In the introduction, Cook takes the interesting route of comparing the modern American situation to that of ancient Athens, claiming that America risks following Athens' arrogant path towards self-destruction in the international sphere. While this chapter was unexpected in a book about military ethics, it proved to be quite interesting and enlightening for me as someone who does not know much about Athenian history. Instead of explicitly talking about military ethics, it sets the scene for (at the time of Cook's writing) the current American situation in the international community. I would rate it a 4 out of 5 stars.

The first part of the book, "Moral Facets of Military Service," containing chapters on "The Moral Framework of War," "Why Serve the State? Moral Foundations of Officership," "The Normative Dimensions of Military Professionalism," and "The Moral Role of Professional Military Advice," is Cook's strongest work in this book. I would recommend this part of the book to anyone currently serving in the military or anyone simply interested in beginning to study the relationship between just war theory and military service. In it, Cook sets the foundation for how war may be waged justly in the first place (jus ad bellum and jus in bello), focuses on why the nation-state is worthy of military service, examines the ideas behind the obligation to obey orders as a military professional, and describes the proper relationship between the military and the civilian political leadership of the country. He does, however, tend to repeat himself, which can be frustrating at times. I would rate this part a 4 out of 5 stars.

The second part of the book, "Moral Soldiers and Moral Causes: Serving the Needs of Justice in the New World Order," took me much longer to get through. In this part, Cook writes on "Just Peacemaking: The Challenges of Humanitarian Intervention," "Resisting Global Terrorism," "Noncombatant Immunity and the Force Protection Imperative," "Strategic Theory, Military Practice, and the Laws of War: The Case of Strategic Bombing," and "Transcending Westphalia." Because all but one of these chapters were originally published as independent essays about very similar topics, there is a lot of material that repeats in this part of the book. He also relies frequently on the examples of the intervention in Kosovo and the Gulf War to prove his points, which gets tiresome by the end of the book, though he does prove his points well. The chapter on just peacemaking is primarily a pseudo-review of another book, which the reader may find aggravating, and the chapter on strategic bombing may not appeal to everyone. However, the noncombatant immunity chapter stands out as the strongest one in this part and points out the tension between committing forces to humanitarian efforts in other nations and the moral imperative to protect the lives of the soldiers of one's own country if that country is not threatened. Additionally, he marks the shift beyond a Westphalian model of what warrants intervention, which is useful in evaluating humanitarian interventions. For those looking to see what the Kosovo intervention and Gulf War look like examined from a moral lens, this entire part may be interesting to you. Overall, I would give this section a 2.5 out of 5 stars, maybe 3.

As a general disclaimer, it is important to note that the book was published in 2004, and many of the essays within it were published earlier than that, with the earliest ones published in 2000. As such, some of the examples and terminology may seem dated to the modern reader. Cook takes a perspective of one writing soon after the Cold War and the Gulf War, so one should not expect a modern take that includes a lot of attention on the Global War on Terror or on near-peer threats.

Overall, I would give this book a 3.5 out of 5 stars due to an interesting introduction, engaging first part, and weaker second part. His logic was pretty solid in the second part (as it was in the first), but it seemed like he was more interested in highlighting a need for an ethical approach towards these topics rather than what he actually believed that approach should be. I also found the repetition of the author wearisome at times, and the grammar was occasionally hard to read at points. The examples proved to be a little dated, though he still did a good job of proving his points with them. As mentioned above, I would definitely recommend the first part of the book to any military servicemember interested in this topic.

[Ted Stokes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a deceptively good discussion on jus ad bellum and jus in bello, considering the size of the book. Cook's strength is in presenting these complex topics in an easy to comprehend and historically comparative nature.

[Brian W · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book focuses on the Just War theory. The book argues for us to change our current paradigm on how the military gains self-esteem through large conventional war to more miniature limited type warfare. There are some interesting points in the book. OK, ok, read.

[Strick · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half was much better than the second

[Courtney Orsbon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Provides a compelling argument for the continued existence of military forces and against overly idealistic views of "world peace" based on an Augustinian view of the imperfect world and the current inaccessibility to a perfect world. I haven't read "The City of God" myself, but even the assumption aside, this book takes a pragmatic approach to the moral basis of maintaining armed forces. Also, a very good reflection on the new directions the US military as a vector of humanitarian aid. Definitely worth the read if you are interested in arguments for the moral legitimacy of the military.