RfR: Of Means and Ends

This chapter comprises a list of "rules pertaining to the ethics of means and ends" and uses examples from history instead of hypothetical situations to try to validate the rules. The following is the list and a couple of quotes from this chapter. I think it best you read the list and discuss with your book club(s) the pros/cons of each rule. Also try to determine whether the examples used to validate the rules is appropriate.

"To say that corrupt means corrupt the ends is to believe in the immaculate conception of ends and principles."

Ethics of means and ends:
1. One's concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one's personal interest in the issue.
2. The judgment of the ethics of means is dependent upon the political position of those sitting in judgment.
3. In war the end justifies almost any means.
4. Judgment must be made in the context of the times in which the action occurred and not from any other chronological vantage point.
5. Concern with ethics increases with the number of means available and vice versa.
6. The less important the end to be desired, the more one can afford to engage in ethical evaluations of means.
7. Generally success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics.
8. The morality of a means depends upon whether the means is being employed at a time of imminent defeat or imminent victory.
9. Any effective means is automatically judged by the opposition as being unethical.
10. You do what you can with what you have and clothe it with moral garments.
11. Goals must be phrased in general terms like "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity," "Of the Common Welfare," "Pursuit of Happiness," or "Bread and Peace."

"[I]n action, one does not always enjoy the luxury of a decision that is consistent both with one's individual conscience and the good of mankind. The choice must always be for the latter."