The Nuclear dilemma and the just war tradition /

An essential contribution to the post-MAD (mutual assured destruction) debate among ethicists and policymakers about future US nuclear deterrence and defense policy. The eight authors work out of the ``justifiable war'' perspective, broadly defined, leaving aside pacifism; but plenty of scope remains for sharp argument about ``deterrence only,'' ``deterrence plus limited war-fighting,'' ``supreme emergency,'' and other positions. Contributors include highly respected experts such as O'Brien, James T. Johnson, and Michael Walzer (although Walzer's piece disappointingly makes an oblique point rather than substantially updates his earlier influential stance). The 1983 pastoral letter of the US Catholic bishops receives considerable critical attention. Nearly all these papers bring moral philosophy directly and creatively to bear upon the nitty-gritty of deterrence policy, including some emphasis on the impact of changing weapons technology. The level of analysis is impressive, reflecting hard intellectual struggle for high moral and human stakes. The writing is generally clear and the arguments accessible to nonexperts; documentation and indexing are thorough. Highly recommended for upper-level undergraduate and graduate collections.-H.R. Davis, Beloit College