A Matter of Principle: Humanitarian Arguments for War in Iraq

385 Pages·2005·2.182 MB·English

by  Thomas Cushman

A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE

A Matter of Principle
Humanitarian Arguments
for War in Iraq
EDITED BY
Thomas Cushman
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS Berkeley Los Angeles London
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
©2005by The Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A matter of principle : humanitarian arguments for war
in Iraq / edited by Thomas Cushman.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn0-520-24486-9(cloth : alk. paper)—
isbn0-520-24555-5(pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Iraq War, 2003—Moral and ethical aspects.
I. Cushman, Thomas, 1959–
ds79.76.m38 2005
956.7044'31—dc22 2004027416
Manufactured in the United States of America
14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed on Ecobook 50containing a minimum 50%
post-consumer waste, processed chlorine free. The
balancecontains virgin pulp, including 25% Forest
Stewardship Council Certified for no old growth tree
cutting, processed either tcforecf. The sheet is
acid-free and meets the minimum requirements of
ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (R 1997)(Permanence of
Paper).(cid:39)
This book is dedicated to all of those who
have lost their lives in Iraq in the struggle
against tyranny and for the human rights
of the Iraqi people.

Contents
Acknowledgments / xi
Introduction: The Liberal-Humanitarian Case
for War in Iraq
thomas cushman / 1
PART ONE RECONSIDERING REGIME CHANGE
1 The Case for Regime Change
christopher hitchens / 29
2 Liberal Legacies, Europe’s Totalitarian Era, and the
Iraq War: Historical Conjunctures and Comparisons
jeffrey herf / 39
3 “Regime Change”: The Case of Iraq
jan narveson / 57
4 In the Murk of It: Iraq Reconsidered
mitchell cohen / 76
PART TWO PHILOSOPHICALARGUMENTS
5 National Interest and International Law
roger scruton / 95
6 Just War against an “Outlaw” Region
mehdi mozaffari / 106
7 Moral Arguments: Sovereignty, Feasibility,
Agency, and Consequences
daniel kofman / 125
PART THREE CRITIQUES OF THE LEFT
8 A Friendly Drink in a Time of War
paul berman / 147
9 Wielding the Moral Club
ian buruma / 152
10 Peace, Human Rights, and the Moral Choices
of the Churches
mient jan faber / 160
11 Ethical Correctness and the Decline of the Left
jonathan rée / 179
12 Pages from a Daily Journal of Argument
norman geras / 191
13 Liberal Realism or Liberal Idealism:
The Iraq War and the Limits of Tolerance
richard just / 207
PART FOUR EUROPEAN DIMENSIONS
14 Iraq and the European Left
john lloyd / 223
15 Guilt’s End: How Germany Redefined the
Lessons of Its Past during the Iraq War
richard herzinger / 233
16 The Iraq War and the French Left
michel taubmann / 243
17 Tempting Illusions, Scary Realities,
or the Emperor’s New Clothes II
anders jerichow / 259
PART FIVE SOLIDARITY
18 Antitotalitarianism as a Vocation:
An Interview with Adam Michnik
thomas cushman and adam michnik / 271
19 Sometimes, a War Saves People
jose ramos-horta / 281
20 Gulf War Syndrome Mark II: The Case for Siding
with the Iraqi People
johann hari / 285
21 “They Don’t Know One Little Thing”
pamela bone / 297
22 “Why Did It Take You So Long to Get Here?”
ann clwyd / 309
PART SIX LIBERAL STATESMANSHIP
23 Full Statement to the House of Commons,
18March2003
tony blair / 329
24 The Threat of Global Terrorism
tony blair / 340
Contributors / 353
Index / 361