A Problem of Paradigms: Grounding Asymmetric Institutional Permissions for the Use of Lethal Force

dc.contributor.authorGastineau, Adam Charles
dc.date.accessioned2016-11-24T04:21:46Z
dc.date.available2016-11-24T04:21:46Z
dc.date.issued2016
dc.description.abstractIn this thesis I seek to demonstrate that the legal and customary norms defining the permissible use of lethal force by police are more restrictive than those defining the permissible use of lethal force by military personnel. I argue that in many cases this asymmetry can rest on a foundation provided by the moral norms of individual self- defense, but that the strength of this foundation is contingent on the context in which lethal force is used. Provided that three contextual asymmetries between police and military operations hold, we can morally justify the asymmetric legal and customary permissions granted to these two institutions on the basis of threat, liability, necessity, and proportionality. However, there are limits to the moral grounds these norms can provide. In cases where the three contextual asymmetries begin to break down, the moral foundation offered by the moral norms of individual self-defense weakens. In cases of contextual equivalence, we are forced to adopt one of two conclusions. Either we accept that our legal and customary norms are without moral foundation in such cases, or we must find alternative moral reasons to morally justify the asymmetry. In the final section I briefly draw out the strengths and weaknesses of both positions and offer some discussion of what other moral reasons we might use to shore-up the moral foundation for the asymmetry in the legal and customary norms regulating the permissible use by military and police institutions.en_AU
dc.identifier.otherb40394414
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1885/110614
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.subjectLethal Forceen_AU
dc.subjectSelf-Defenseen_AU
dc.subjectMilitary Ethicsen_AU
dc.subjectPolice Ethicsen_AU
dc.subjectLaw of Armed Conflicten_AU
dc.subjectInternational Human Rights Lawen_AU
dc.subjectGrey Zone Conflicten_AU
dc.subjectIrregular Conflicten_AU
dc.subjectWar on Terroren_AU
dc.subjectMilitarization of Policeen_AU
dc.subjectHumanitarian Interventionen_AU
dc.titleA Problem of Paradigms: Grounding Asymmetric Institutional Permissions for the Use of Lethal Forceen_AU
dc.typeThesis (MPhil)en_AU
dcterms.valid2016en_AU
local.contributor.affiliationCentre for Moral, Social, and Political Theory, School of Philosophy, ANU College of Arts & Social Sciences, The Australian National Universityen_AU
local.contributor.authoremailadam.gastineau@anu.edu.auen_AU
local.contributor.supervisorLazar, Seth
local.contributor.supervisorcontactseth.lazar@anu.edu.auen_AU
local.description.notesauthor deposited 24/11/2016en_AU
local.identifier.doi10.25911/5d7636f9b37f6
local.mintdoimint
local.type.degreeMaster of Philosophy (MPhil)en_AU

Downloads

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Gastineau Thesis 2016.pdf
Size:
1.06 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
884 B
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description: