Customer Reviews

Nuclear Deterrence, Morality and Realism

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Rather unfortunately, this book appeared just two years before the end of the Cold War. It therefore will now seem dated to some, particularly in light of the new threats that have arisen since 1989; the old battles over nuclear deterrence have been replaced by new battles over how to deal with terrorism.

But it would be a great shame to let the book be forgotten for this reason. Finnis, Grisez, and Boyle are three of the leading scholars responsible for the revival of Natural Law theories in the late twentieth century, and their book presents their joint effort in analyzing the moral deficiencies of consequentialist (outcome-oriented) thinking. The book is well worth owning for just this reason. No matter one's feelings about the success of Natural Law reasoning (and I have considerable doubts), this book will help any reader better understand what is truly at stake in, for instance, contemporary debates over the use of torture.

Finnis presents a new outlook on an old battle. He considers the ethical and moral, as well as the pragmatic issues pertaining to the nuclear question.