Jon Quong on Self-Defense

Oct 3, 2012

What conditions make it permissible for one person to kill another? And what does it mean if the theories that we've used as the basis of war turn out to be wrong? Here's Jon Quong of the University of Manchester.

Today on Public Ethics Radio we're returning to one of our favorite themes: self-defense and the ethics of war. With Jon Quong of the University of Manchester, we're going to ask the question, what conditions make it permissible for one person to kill another? And what does it mean if the theories that we've used as the basis of war turn out to be wrong?

For the full text, please download the PDF below.

You may also like

MAY 29, 2026 Podcast

Democracy in Retreat

Freedom House's Yana Gorokhovskaia discusses the political and ethical stakes of two decades of global freedom decline.

Tehran, Iran. CREDIT: Shutterstock.com/Mazur Travel

MAY 27, 2026 Article

Iran Is Not Venezuela—But That’s Not the Point: The Ethics of American Tactical Power

Despite vast differences, Washington has treated Iran and Venezuela as parallel cases, writes Neda Bolourchi. What does this reveal about the ethics of American power?

Left to Right: Ann Curry, Ben Loeterman, Emma Belcher, Joel Rosenthal. CREDIT: Bryan Goldberg Photogrpahy.

MAY 22, 2026 Video

Nuclear Ethics

This "Values & Interests" panel discussion, held in partnership with PBS and moderated by acclaimed journalist Ann Curry, is available to view in full.

Not translated

This content has not yet been translated into your language. You can request a translation by clicking the button below.

Request Translation