A great episode as per usual :) On Trump it's an interesting question. I remember reading a piece about Trump that when he was given intelligence on Assad bombing his own people just after he came into office he was deeply affected by it on a visceral level which is why he retaliated with a bombing raid of his own. But apparently he had …
A great episode as per usual :) On Trump it's an interesting question. I remember reading a piece about Trump that when he was given intelligence on Assad bombing his own people just after he came into office he was deeply affected by it on a visceral level which is why he retaliated with a bombing raid of his own. But apparently he had to be talked down from a much more radical plan. Trump therefore strikes me as a reactionary rather than someone with those first principle instincts that we often grant politicians.
I guess on the question of just war it strikes me that a core component of a just war is a just outcome i.e., you can actually affect change via your action. It strikes me that despite its best efforts the US has not been able to create just outcomes even when it has wanted to. Obama in this sense was even worse because he actively engendered immoral outcomes when thinking about broader 'strategic interests'. But this isn't necessarily an argument to stop trying to achieve good outcomes or a just peace. Rather, it is a cautious warning against military action being used as a flag waving prop (which i think trump would do in a heartbeat if he felt it would win him an election).
A great episode as per usual :) On Trump it's an interesting question. I remember reading a piece about Trump that when he was given intelligence on Assad bombing his own people just after he came into office he was deeply affected by it on a visceral level which is why he retaliated with a bombing raid of his own. But apparently he had to be talked down from a much more radical plan. Trump therefore strikes me as a reactionary rather than someone with those first principle instincts that we often grant politicians.
I guess on the question of just war it strikes me that a core component of a just war is a just outcome i.e., you can actually affect change via your action. It strikes me that despite its best efforts the US has not been able to create just outcomes even when it has wanted to. Obama in this sense was even worse because he actively engendered immoral outcomes when thinking about broader 'strategic interests'. But this isn't necessarily an argument to stop trying to achieve good outcomes or a just peace. Rather, it is a cautious warning against military action being used as a flag waving prop (which i think trump would do in a heartbeat if he felt it would win him an election).