56 research outputs found

    Killing, Letting Die, and the Alleged Necessity of Military Intervention

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    Recent international developments have introduced the possibility of war waged on behalf of people unable to defend themselves, and when the attacking partiesā€™ interests appear not to be at stake. Are purely military forms of ā€œhumanitarian interventionā€ sometimes morally required? Can such military missions be reconciled with the widely held belief in the moral distinction between killing and letting die? In exploring these questions, the two dominant paradigms in writing about war are considered: just war theory and utilitarianism. The moral centrality of intentions emerges through an explanation of the distinction often made between natural and man-made catastrophe. Ultimately, the alleged permissibility of the ā€œcollateral damageā€ to which military intervention gives rise implies the permissibility of pacifism, thus invalidating the claim that the resort to deadly force is sometimes morally obligatory

    Significant Surface-Water Connectivity of Geographically Isolated Wetlands

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    We evaluated the current literature, coupled with our collective research expertise, on surface-water connectivity of wetlands considered to be geographically isolated (sensu Tiner Wetlands 23:494ā€“516, 2003a) to critically assess the scientific foundation of grouping wetlands based on the singular condition of being surrounded by uplands. The most recent research on wetlands considered to be geographically isolated shows the difficulties in grouping an ecological resource that does not reliably indicate lack of surface water connectivity in order to meet legal, regulatory, or scientific needs. Additionally, the practice of identifying geographically isolated wetlands based on distance from a stream can result in gross overestimates of the number of wetlands lacking ecologically important surface-water connections. Our findings do not support use of the overly simplistic label of geographically isolated wetlands . Wetlands surrounded by uplands vary in function and surface water connections based on wetland landscape setting, context, climate, and geographic region and should be evaluated as such. We found that the geographically isolated grouping does not reflect our understanding of the hydrologic variability of these wetlands and hence does not benefit conservation of the Nationā€™s diverse wetland resources. Therefore, we strongly discourage use of categorizations that provide overly simplistic views of surface water connectivity of wetlands fully embedded in upland landscapes

    Geographically Isolated Wetlands: Rethinking a Misnomer

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    Abstract We explore the category Bgeographically isolated wetlands^(GIWs; i.e., wetlands completely surrounded by uplands at the local scale) as used in the wetland sciences. As currently used, the GIW category (1) hampers scientific efforts by obscuring important hydrological and ecological differences among multiple wetland functional types, (2) aggregates wetlands in a manner not reflective of regulatory and management information needs, (3) implies wetlands so described are in some way Bisolated,^an often incorrect implication, (4) is inconsistent with more broadly used and accepted concepts of Bgeographic isolation,^and (5) has injected unnecessary confusion into scientific investigations and discussions. Instead, we suggest other wetland classification systems offer more informative alternatives. For example, hydrogeomorphic (HGM) classes based on wellestablished scientific definitions account for wetland functional diversity thereby facilitating explorations into questions of connectivity without an a priori designation of Bisolation.^Additionally, an HGM-type approach could be used in combination with terms reflective of current regulatory or policymaking needs. For those rare cases in which the condition of being surrounded by uplands is the relevant distinguishing characteristic, use of terminology that does not unnecessarily imply isolation (e.g., Bupland embedded wetlands^) would help alleviate much confusion caused by the Bgeographically isolated wetlands^misnomer

    Pragmatism, Love, and Morality: Triangular Reflections in Carol Reed's The Third Man

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    Carol Reedā€™s 1949 filmĀ The Third ManĀ offers a richly metaphorical expression of the view that pragmatism, love, and morality are incommensurable perspectives from which to interpret the world. Harry Lime is a black market trader whose actions are constrained only by practical considerations. Anna Schmidt, Lime's former lover, understands what is morally wrong with what Lime does, but refuses to assist the police. In contrast, Holly Martins, an old friend from childhood, ultimately agrees to help trap Lime. These three protagonists occupy distinct conceptual worlds that color their interpretation of the others with whom they interact. In addition to illustrating the paradoxes of love and morality,Ā The Third ManĀ self-referentially expresses the idea that reality is far more complex than language could ever convey

    Death from above: The perils of lethal drone strikes

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