Uh-Oh - Futility Closet

The Fallacy of Futility: Is Ukraine Justified in Fighting a War It Cannot Win?

When policy analysts argue that Ukraine should stop fighting because it cannot realistically hope to repel Russia and reclaim its occupied territories, they often implicitly or explicitly reference common principles of military ethics—but in narrow and incomplete ways that undermine the analysis. According to traditional just war theory principles of jus ad bellum (justified resort to war), fighting is morally permitted only when there is reason…

Uh-Oh - Futility Closet

Every unjust act is inexpedient; No unjust act is expedient; No expedient act is unjust; Therefore every expedient act is just. — Ralph L. Woods, How to Torture Your Mind, 1969