POL208Y1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: George W. Bush, Security Dilemma, Global Justice
16 Apr 2014
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Lecture 4 human rights: dilemma about hr, origin and evolution since 1945, question of moral choice, dilemma about hr. Hr in international affairs- limits opportunities for moral action. Anarchy, survival, security dilemma, absence of intl prosecutor. World where absolutes do not exist and are counterproductive. What is perceived as an absolute is a matter of opinion/ negotiation. Universal hr are more often than not perceived as another attempt by the west to further their own interests. The very idea of universal hr is contested- global ethics implies one world; there is no such thing as states/ specifics- a discriminating factor. We have a minimal global society of states is implied- despite being different, all share some minimal standard of behaviour. In the name of hr, states also act aggressively- napoleon to gwb. When you expand and invade in the name of hr, there is an issue. But some progresses have been made: origin and evolution.
