Lukas Svana

The issue of human nature is very complex and elusive, and mankind has been trying to unveil its elements since the beginnings of any philosophical reasoning. Whether they were questions of ontology, gnoseology, or ethics, it has been an uneasy task to uncover the complexity of the term. This article concentrates on finding ideas that support the existence of human nature and consequently searches for its possible ethical implications. I focused on the traditional issues of good vs evil, especially in terms of dichotomy between committing violent acts and waging wars in contradiction to creation of conditions for peaceful and just societies. In the article, I compare various ideas on human nature and analyse their potential in unveiling its ethical implications. I also comment on the possibility of war and peace being consequences of human nature and its connection to our disposition of being moral subjects.

The aim of this paper is to study and analyse the Charlie Hebdo attacks from a methodological and an ethical perspective, concentrating generally, though in some cases indirectly, on the consequences of our actions and the motives behind them. The analysis examines the issues of liberties, freedoms and responsibilities in general and further applies these values to the phenomenon of terrorism in contemporary society. The primary goal of this study is to use the Thomas Aquinas doctrine of double effect and Michael Ignatieff’s lesser evil theory to appraise specific acts of terrorism. The article suggests that certain freedoms should be limited in democratic societies and thus ensure safety.

The article deals with the newly discussed set of principles that focus on various issues concerning the end of a war and the establishment of peaceful conditions for the society after a war ends. It also reveals some drawbacks of the jus post bellum principles and searches for its possible modifications into a more complex and applicable set of rules that should govern any post-war activities on both sides of the conflict. The aim is to reach its plausibility in a dynamic global society and thus argue that global peace is an attainable goal only when it becomes the goal of the global community.

The article deals with one of the most problematic principles of just war theory. It looks at the usage of the terms civilian, innocent and non-combatant and suggests how they can be interpreted. The principle of non-combatant immunity remains a real challenge for just war theory in the 21st century as it is designed to protect a specific group of people in times of war. The article considers the problematic issue of targeting non-combatants in war times as well as suggesting how we might better comprehend the problem.

The article deals with the philosophical and ethical implications of transhumanism and human enhancement techniques. It considers how enhancement and therapy are two different types of biomedical intervention. It then looks at the implementation of these ideas in the military sector. It analyses various standpoints and views on transhumanism, the benefits and risks of using newly acquired scientific knowledge to improve and alter naturally deficient human nature. The need for ethical reflection and argumentation is emphasized; new scientific discoveries can dramatically change our experience of the world around us and may present a huge risk to mankind if left unchecked and not critically discussed. The article reflects on the dangers and risks of human enhancement and its possible consequences on the battlefield as well as the broader contexts and implications. The article also considers which criteria would be suitable to ensure beneficial and less controversial enhancements are carefully selected and to enable these to be distinguished from more dangerous practices that change the human body and/or mind. The aim is to consider and evaluate the possible benefits and risks of using enhancements for military purposes and to identify possible criteria for their justification and/or rejection.

As the title of this article suggests, I feel the need to contribute to the process of revitalizing the teaching of ethics and/or any other kind of applied ethics as well. The methods, forms and aims of these disciplines have to be revived, revitalized and actualized in order to increase the moral consciousness and understanding of moral agents. I consider the increasing of moral consciousness as the basic precondition for the moral progress of the whole society and mankind as well. It is not an easy task in a world where technological, informational and scientific progress is moving forward rapidly and brings many benefits to people. On the other hand, it also brings up new complicated and delicate issues, moral dilemmas and questions for which a suitable and sustainable answer has to be found. Therefore, there is an obligation to guarantee that the moral progress will not slow down in this process of rapidly changing circumstances of human existence. This can be achieved by implementing some new methods of teaching or at least the flawless usage of older methods as well as using ethics of social consequences as the basis of our critical reflections and our decision making process in order to improve the contemporary situation of moral stagnation.

The paper proposes and confronts some of the essential problems in the field of military ethics. It primarily focuses on its goals, perspectives and its use in practice. Just war theory and ethics of social consequences are used as two possible methodological approaches in dealing with these issues and in revealing the most fundamental answers in times of wars and conflicts. The article also presents the idea of the inevitability of implementing military ethics and all of its sub-fields into the structure of liberal arts and providing a defendable moral standpoint in these delicate issues.

The article deals with ethics of social consequences as a modern ethical theory and proposes some critical remarks based on various elaborations of the theory presented in the newly published edited volume Ethics of social consequences: Philosophical, applied and professional challenges. It confronts and challenges several of the presented concepts and ideas and tries to find a solution for the theory to become even more elaborated but still remain within the boundaries of its ontological framework.