Nonkilling Security and the State

by Benjamin Peters, Klaus Schlichtmann, Gene Keyes

"The time has come to start anew history in this respect. We must establish reverence for life as the cornerstone of reverence for life not only by individuals, but also by institutions, foremost among them nations. Institutions were created originally for the good and survival of the people. This is their main justification and merit. They have no right to kill or to develop and stockpile incredible arsenals of weapons meant to kill millions of people, possibly all humanity. And the same nations come to the UN and dare to speak about human rights! Do these include the right to life and the right not to kill? Perhaps if we approach the question of disarmament from the fundamental principle of reverence for life, we might achieve better progress" (from Robert Muller's Epilogue).

426 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2013

About the author

Benjamin Peters is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Tulsa and affiliated faculty at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School.