Defending Humanity

Author : George P. Fletcher,Jens David Ohlin
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 288 pages
File Size : 44,5 Mb
Release : 2013-02-01
Category : Law
ISBN : 9780199927050

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Defending Humanity by George P. Fletcher,Jens David Ohlin Pdf

In Defending Humanity, internationally acclaimed legal scholar George P. Fletcher and Jens David Ohlin, a leading expert on international criminal law, tackle one of the most important and controversial questions of our time: When is war justified? When a nation is attacked, few would deny that it has the right to respond with force. But what about preemptive and preventive wars, or crossing another state's border to stop genocide? Was Israel justified in initiating the Six Day War, and was NATO's intervention in Kosovo legal? What about the U.S. invasion of Iraq? In their provocative book, Fletcher and Ohlin offer a groundbreaking theory on the legality of war with clear guidelines for evaluating these interventions. The authors argue that much of the confusion on the subject stems from a persistent misunderstanding of the United Nations Charter. The Charter appears to be very clear on the use of military force: it is only allowed when authorized by the Security Council or in self-defense. Unfortunately, this has led to the problem of justifying force when the Security Council refuses to act or when self-defense is thought not to apply--and to the difficult dilemma of declaring such interventions illegal or ignoring the UN Charter altogether. Fletcher and Ohlin suggest that the answer lies in going back to the domestic criminal law concepts upon which the UN Charter was originally based, in particular, the concept of "legitimate defense," which encompasses not only self-defense but defense of others. Lost in the English-language version of the Charter but a vital part of the French and other non-English versions, the concept of legitimate defense will enable political leaders, courts, and scholars to see the solid basis under international law for states to intervene with force--not just to protect themselves against an imminent attack but also to defend other national groups.

Author : George P. Fletcher,Jens David Ohlin
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 286 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2013-02-01
Category : Law
ISBN : 9780198040354

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Defending Humanity by George P. Fletcher,Jens David Ohlin Pdf

In Defending Humanity, internationally acclaimed legal scholar George P. Fletcher and Jens David Ohlin, a leading expert on international criminal law, tackle one of the most important and controversial questions of our time: When is war justified? When a nation is attacked, few would deny that it has the right to respond with force. But what about preemptive and preventive wars, or crossing another state's border to stop genocide? Was Israel justified in initiating the Six Day War, and was NATO's intervention in Kosovo legal? What about the U.S. invasion of Iraq? In their provocative book, Fletcher and Ohlin offer a groundbreaking theory on the legality of war with clear guidelines for evaluating these interventions. The authors argue that much of the confusion on the subject stems from a persistent misunderstanding of the United Nations Charter. The Charter appears to be very clear on the use of military force: it is only allowed when authorized by the Security Council or in self-defense. Unfortunately, this has led to the problem of justifying force when the Security Council refuses to act or when self-defense is thought not to apply--and to the difficult dilemma of declaring such interventions illegal or ignoring the UN Charter altogether. Fletcher and Ohlin suggest that the answer lies in going back to the domestic criminal law concepts upon which the UN Charter was originally based, in particular, the concept of "legitimate defense," which encompasses not only self-defense but defense of others. Lost in the English-language version of the Charter but a vital part of the French and other non-English versions, the concept of legitimate defense will enable political leaders, courts, and scholars to see the solid basis under international law for states to intervene with force--not just to protect themselves against an imminent attack but also to defend other national groups.

Author : Martha C. Nussbaum
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 345 pages
File Size : 43,9 Mb
Release : 1998-10-01
Category : Education
ISBN : 9780674735460

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Cultivating Humanity by Martha C. Nussbaum Pdf

How can higher education today create a community of critical thinkers and searchers for truth that transcends the boundaries of class, gender, and nation? Martha C. Nussbaum, philosopher and classicist, argues that contemporary curricular reform is already producing such “citizens of the world” in its advocacy of diverse forms of cross-cultural studies. Her vigorous defense of “the new education” is rooted in Seneca’s ideal of the citizen who scrutinizes tradition critically and who respects the ability to reason wherever it is found—in rich or poor, native or foreigner, female or male. Drawing on Socrates and the Stoics, Nussbaum establishes three core values of liberal education: critical self-examination, the ideal of the world citizen, and the development of the narrative imagination. Then, taking us into classrooms and campuses across the nation, including prominent research universities, small independent colleges, and religious institutions, she shows how these values are (and in some instances are not) being embodied in particular courses. She defends such burgeoning subject areas as gender, minority, and gay studies against charges of moral relativism and low standards, and underscores their dynamic and fundamental contribution to critical reasoning and world citizenship. For Nussbaum, liberal education is alive and well on American campuses in the late twentieth century. It is not only viable, promising, and constructive, but it is essential to a democratic society. Taking up the challenge of conservative critics of academe, she argues persuasively that sustained reform in the aim and content of liberal education is the most vital and invigorating force in higher education today.

Author : Thomas Fuchs
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 273 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2021
Category : Computers
ISBN : 9780192898197

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In Defense of the Human Being by Thomas Fuchs Pdf

With the progress of artificial intelligence, the digitalization of the lifeworld, and the reduction of the mind to neuronal processes, the human being increasingly appears to be just a product of data and algorithms. That is, we conceive ourselves in the image of our machines, and conversely, we elevate our machines and our brains to new subjects. At the same time, demands for an enhancement of human nature culminate in transhumanist visions of taking human evolution to a new stage. Against this self-reification of the human being, this book defends a humanism of embodiment: our corporeality, vitality, embodied freedom are the foundations of a self-determined existence, which uses these new technologies only as a means, instead of letting them rule us. In Defence of the Human Being offers an array of interventions directed against a reductionist naturalism or transhumanism in various areas of science and society. As alternative it offers an embodied and enactive account of the human person: we are neither pure minds nor brains, but primarily embodied, living beings in relation with others. Fuchs applied this concept to issues such as artificial intelligence, transhumanism and enhancement, virtual reality, neuroscience, embodied freedom, psychiatry, and finally to the accelerating dynamics of current society which lead to an increasing disembodiment of our everyday conduct of life. Cutting across neuroscience, philosophy, and psychiatry, this important new book applies cutting-edge concepts of embodiment and enactivism to the current scientific, technological and cultural tendencies that will crucially influence our society's development in the 21st century.

Author : Frank Pasquale
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 345 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2020-10-27
Category : Law
ISBN : 9780674975224

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New Laws of Robotics by Frank Pasquale Pdf

AI is poised to disrupt our work and our lives. We can harness these technologies rather than fall captive to them—but only through wise regulation. Too many CEOs tell a simple story about the future of work: if a machine can do what you do, your job will be automated. They envision everyone from doctors to soldiers rendered superfluous by ever-more-powerful AI. They offer stark alternatives: make robots or be replaced by them. Another story is possible. In virtually every walk of life, robotic systems can make labor more valuable, not less. Frank Pasquale tells the story of nurses, teachers, designers, and others who partner with technologists, rather than meekly serving as data sources for their computerized replacements. This cooperation reveals the kind of technological advance that could bring us all better health care, education, and more, while maintaining meaningful work. These partnerships also show how law and regulation can promote prosperity for all, rather than a zero-sum race of humans against machines. How far should AI be entrusted to assume tasks once performed by humans? What is gained and lost when it does? What is the optimal mix of robotic and human interaction? New Laws of Robotics makes the case that policymakers must not allow corporations or engineers to answer these questions alone. The kind of automation we get—and who it benefits—will depend on myriad small decisions about how to develop AI. Pasquale proposes ways to democratize that decision making, rather than centralize it in unaccountable firms. Sober yet optimistic, New Laws of Robotics offers an inspiring vision of technological progress, in which human capacities and expertise are the irreplaceable center of an inclusive economy.

Author : Alain de Benoist
Publisher : Arktos
Page : 122 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2011
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781907166211

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Beyond Human Rights by Alain de Benoist Pdf

The second volume in an ongoing series of English translations of de Benoist's works is an examination of the origins of the concept of human rights in European Antiquity, in which rights were defined in terms of the individual's relationship to his community and were understood as being exclusive to that community alone.

Author : Nicanor Perlas
Publisher : Temple Lodge Publishing
Page : 244 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2018-07-30
Category : Anthroposophy
ISBN : 9781912230174

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Humanity's Last Stand by Nicanor Perlas Pdf

Although still in its earliest stages, artificial intelligence (AI) is radically transforming all aspects of society. With the immanent emergence of Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) and the illusory temptations of "transhumanism," humankind stands at a crossroads. Nicanor Perlas makes an urgent plea in this book. It is imperative, he says, that we take immediate steps to ensure that digitized technology is aligned to human values and priorities. Otherwise, ASI will kill the essence of our humanity. Furthermore, if we do not master it now, ASI will transform humanity into its own image--ultimately, it will destroy the human race. AI experts have not offered a single cogent solution to this existential threat. Rudolf Steiner, however, not only foresaw these developments, but also provided clear alternatives. Steiner--who developed a contemporary scientific approach to spirituality--provided philosophical, ontological, and social innovations to save humanity from this technological abyss. It is the task of the global anthroposophic movement to pioneer this civilization-saving work--to establish spiritual-scientific ideas in mainstream culture that would allow AI to emerge in a healthier societal context. Perlas offers an overview of the AI phenomenon, together with its related transhuman concepts of "perfecting humanity," outlining the critical internal and external responses needed to meet them consciously. In particular, the author addresses the movement connected to the work of Rudolf Steiner, indicating its all-important tasks to cooperate with progressive individuals and movements, including scientists and civil society activists; to mobilize its "daughter" movements for action; and, ultimately, to cooperate with the spiritual powers that have guided and served humanity since the dawn of time. This, says Perlas, is humanity's last stand. Failure is not an option. C O N T E N T S Preface Part One: Brave New World of Artificial Intelligence 1. The World Is on Fire! 2. Utopia or Extinction? 3. Awakening to our True Humanity--the Way Out Part Two: Preparing for Spiritual Battle 4. Spiritual Opponents Fueling the Potential for Technological Apocalypse 5. Anthroposophy: In Defense of the Truly Human 6. The Mission and Ways of Evil 7. The Two Milestones of the Global Anthroposophical Movement Part Three: Self and Collective Mastery to Serve the World 8. Self-Mastery--Preparing Our Self for Spiritual Battle 9. Accessing the Support of the Keepers of Humanity 10. Collective Human Intelligence (CHI) Part Four: Activating the Daughter Movements 11. Conditions for Decisive Action 12. The Strategic Role of the Biodynamic Agriculture Movement 13. The Truth Force of the Youth Movement 14. The Original Daughter Movements 15. The Second-Generation Daughter Movements Part Five: Forming Alliances with Other Spiritual Movements 16. The Second and More Spiritual-Scientific Revolution 17. Answering the Four Grand Temptations of Artificial Intelligence 18. The Sleeping Giant: Global Civil Society 2.0 Part Six: Learning from Failure: The Last Stand 19. The Wisdom of Failure 20. The Last Stand 21. The Michaelic Will and the Future of Humanity

Author : Chile Eboe-Osuji
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 908 pages
File Size : 43,7 Mb
Release : 2010-09-24
Category : Law
ISBN : 9789004189577

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Protecting Humanity by Chile Eboe-Osuji Pdf

Inspired by Pillay, some of the modern legends and experts in international law and policy have, in this volume, shared their experiences and thoughts on how better to protect humanity in our time. In the book, we read the wise words of Nobel laureates and other envoys of peace, renowned international judges and famous scholars, as well as from energetic younger minds with great promise as future legends. Some chapters are in French.

Author : Murray Bookchin
Publisher : Burns & Oates
Page : 273 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 1995-01
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 0304328391

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Re-enchanting Humanity by Murray Bookchin Pdf

Author : David Brog
Publisher : ReadHowYouWant.com
Page : 598 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 2011-02
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781459610316

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In Defense of Faith by David Brog Pdf

Religious faith is under assault. In books, movies, and on television, secular critics are attacking religion and the religious with ever-increasing intensity. These ''new atheists'' typically repeat a two-part mantra: They claim that only an idiot could believe in God, and that idiots who do so have been responsible for most of the hate and violence that have plagued humanity. Abandon religion, they urge, and the world will finally know peace. Surprisingly few books have emerged to defend faith from this onslaught. Yet when it comes to this second argument - the behavior of religious people in the world - abstract claims can be tested by reference to objective facts. In Defense of Faith examines the historical record and demonstrates that far from encouraging hate and aggression, the Judeo-Christian tradition has been the West, s most effective curb on these dangerous defects of human nature. In Defense of Faith asserts that the belief in the sanctity and equality of all humans at the core of both Judaism and Christianity - what Brog calls the ''Judeo-Christian idea'' - has been our most effective tool in the struggle for humanity. The Judeo-Christian idea, Brog argues, has provided the intellectual foundation for human rights. Even more importantly, he maintains, the Judeo-Christian idea has repeatedly inspired the faithful to devote their lives to, and often risk their lives in, the fulfillment of these high ideals. In Defense of Faith also convincingly demonstrates that when we abandon religion as the critics urge, peace does not break out. Instead, we quickly revert to the most base instincts of our selfish genes. Written by a Jewish author who works closely with the Christian faith community, In Defense of Faith will appeal to secular and religious readers alike. This book will challenge the secular to reconsider the role of religion in Western civilization. It will inspire the religious to embrace a proud legacy of faith in action for the sake of humanity.

Author : Richard A. Cohen,Tito Marci,Luca Scuccimarra
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2021
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 303075958X

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The Politics of Humanity by Richard A. Cohen,Tito Marci,Luca Scuccimarra Pdf

"Humanism, human rights, and humanitarianism have been dismissed on both the right and the left as sentimental residues of a naïvely moralistic politics that does more harm than good when applied to the real world. But when they are cynically abandoned, as has happened in our increasingly troubled times, the consequences can be dire. In this volume, an international and interdisciplinary array of distinguished scholars breathes new life into these traditions for a world that needs them now more than ever." -Martin Jay, Ehrman Professor of European History Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley "This collected volume is a passionate testimony for defending humanity, justice, and cosmopolitan values in times of multi-level global crisis. It brings together a range of distinguished international scholars addressing burning issues like migration and the political situation in Hong Kong, combined with principled reflections on the social, ethical, and legal foundations of human co-existence with an emphasis on difference, alterity, and vulnerability so urgently needed for a cosmopolitan conception of justice." -Sophie Loidolt, Professor of Philosophy, Chair of Practical Philosophy, Institut für Philosophie, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Germany This book is the collaborative response of engaged scholars from diverse countries and disciplines who are disturbed by the contemporary resurgence of anti-democratic movements and regimes throughout the world. These movements have brought with them vitriolic "nationalist" polemics, state-supported violence, and exclusionary anti-immigrant policies, less than a century after the rise and fall and horrific devastations of fascism in the early 20th century. Richard A. Cohen is Professor of Philosophy and Jewish Thought at the University at Buffalo, SUNY, USA. Tito Marci is Dean of Law Faculty and Professor of Political Science and Sociology at the University of Rome, Sapienza, Italy. Luca Scuccimarra is Professor of History of Political Thought and Chair of Department of Political Science at the University of Rome, Sapienza, Italy.

Author : Richard A. Cohen,Tito Marci,Luca Scuccimarra
Publisher : Springer Nature
Page : 242 pages
File Size : 43,9 Mb
Release : 2021-08-09
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9783030759575

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The Politics of Humanity by Richard A. Cohen,Tito Marci,Luca Scuccimarra Pdf

This book is the collaborative response of engaged scholars from diverse countries and disciplines who are disturbed by the contemporary resurgence of anti-democratic movements and regimes throughout the world. These movements have manifest in vitriolic “nationalist” polemics, state-supported violence, and exclusionary anti-immigrant policies, less than a century after the rise and fall and horrific devastations of fascism in the early 20th century.

Author : Dr. Robin DiAngelo
Publisher : Beacon Press
Page : 194 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2018-06-26
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9780807047422

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White Fragility by Dr. Robin DiAngelo Pdf

The New York Times best-selling book exploring the counterproductive reactions white people have when their assumptions about race are challenged, and how these reactions maintain racial inequality. In this “vital, necessary, and beautiful book” (Michael Eric Dyson), antiracist educator Robin DiAngelo deftly illuminates the phenomenon of white fragility and “allows us to understand racism as a practice not restricted to ‘bad people’ (Claudia Rankine). Referring to the defensive moves that white people make when challenged racially, white fragility is characterized by emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and by behaviors including argumentation and silence. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium and prevent any meaningful cross-racial dialogue. In this in-depth exploration, DiAngelo examines how white fragility develops, how it protects racial inequality, and what we can do to engage more constructively.

Author : Cas Mudde
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
Page : 129 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2019-10-25
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781509536856

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The Far Right Today by Cas Mudde Pdf

The far right is back with a vengeance. After several decades at the political margins, far-right politics has again taken center stage. Three of the world’s largest democracies – Brazil, India, and the United States – now have a radical right leader, while far-right parties continue to increase their profile and support within Europe. In this timely book, leading global expert on political extremism Cas Mudde provides a concise overview of the fourth wave of postwar far-right politics, exploring its history, ideology, organization, causes, and consequences, as well as the responses available to civil society, party, and state actors to challenge its ideas and influence. What defines this current far-right renaissance, Mudde argues, is its mainstreaming and normalization within the contemporary political landscape. Challenging orthodox thinking on the relationship between conventional and far-right politics, Mudde offers a complex and insightful picture of one of the key political challenges of our time.

Author : Leon Kass
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 328 pages
File Size : 42,6 Mb
Release : 2002
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : UOM:39015059982580

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Life, Liberty, and the Defense of Dignity by Leon Kass Pdf

In a series of meditations on cloning, embryo research, the human genome project, the sale of organs, and the assault on mortality itself, Kass evaluates the ongoing effort to break down the natural boundaries given us and to remake the human body into an instrument of our will. What does it mean to treat nascent human life as raw material to be exploited? What does it mean to blur the line between procreation and manufacture? What are the proper limits to this project for the remaking of human nature? These are the questions we should be asking to prevent runaway scientism with its utopian longings from reshaping humankind in the image of our own choosing. Kass believes that technology has done and will continue to do wonders for our health and longevity and that we have much to be thankful for. But there is more at stake in the biological revolution that saving life and avoiding death. We must also strive to protect the ideas and practices that give us dignity and keep us human. The book challenges us to confront the post-human future that may await us by thinking deeply about the life and death issues we face today.