Morality Wars: How Empires, the Born-Again, and the Politically Correct Do Evil in the Name of Good

by Yale R Magrass, Charles Derber, Yale R. Magrass

Book Overview

Is patriotism a good thing in an empire? Did General Petraeus betray us or did Moveon? Does morality often serve immoral purposes? Morality Wars shows us how to understand the subtext of these questions and of all the debates about moral values and liberal versus conservative ideology. Derber and Magrass show that the moral problem today is not just lying but "immoral morality," doing evil in the name of good (e.g., Bush preemptively invading Iraq...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1594515123
• ISBN13: 9781594515125
• Release Date: February 2008
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A book for a political history buff

This book is an easy read and read it cover to cover. It presents a number of very engaging arguments, but its real strength is in the exampling. It is chuck full of very interesting historical examples, many of which I was not at all familiar with, which often add up to compelling support for a number of what are sometimes controversial arguments. The book is a real eye opener on a number of issues, particularly in the areas of contemporary politics and foreign policy. In many cases the analysis of what is going on today become much more understandable when put into historical context. The authors are very successful in their efforts to connect the dots. As I see it, the core argument of this book is that the US Government has long been involved in immoral actions that have often been justified using arguments suggesting that the action was being taken for moral reasons. When stated in general terms this is a proposition that I was willing to accept prior to reading this book. So what did I get from reading it? When defending this broad argument Derber and Magrass bring in a huge number of very interesting examples, many of which I was not aware of. It is one thing to know in advance that over the years the US government has often justified immoral actions using moral arguments, it is quite another to realize how pervasive this behavior has been and how early in the nation's history it began. They do not limit their analysis to the long list of immoral actions taken by the US as extensive reference is also made to exceedingly bad behavior by other nations which was justified in the name of doing good, for example, the moral language about the need to purify the German population used to justify efforts to exterminate the Jews. We learn that, "In 1783 George Washington characterized the colonies as `a rising empire,' and nearly all the Founders saw America as destined to become one of the world's great empires. A great deal of attention is given to examples drawn from prior empires such as the Roman empire, the Spanish empire and the British empire to name only a few. This brings us to what I consider the second major theme of the book, that of "empire." The authors make a persuasive case that all prior empires have engaged in the practice of taking brutally immoral actions that were justified using the language of morality. The authors' broader point is that: (1) the US is an empire today and has behaved like an empire for a very long time, and (2) it, like prior empires, is guilty of a lot of bad behavior that has been justified using the rhetoric of morality. One value of the book IS to make it clear that what many readers will agree has been a bit of a problem over the years has actually been a hugely pervasive problem for US since its inception and continues to be a serious problem today. The authors tell a story of the evolution of the American empire or more precisely what they refer to as the five American Empires: (1) The Fledging C

Five Star Book

Morality Wars describes three `moralities' that are immoral: those of empires, born-agains, and those who espouse Political Correctness. All three do evil in the name of good. They justify inequalities, cruelties and wars in the name of `good' traditional values. The Progressive Morality of the 60ties with its emphasis on equality and peace opposed the Traditional Morality of hierarchy and war. Now Progressive and Traditional `moralities' war with each other for the loyalty of citizens. This five star book confronts the classic dichotomy good and evil, but also emphasizes the harm done by the deception of calling evil good. In their perceptive and lucid style, the authors, Magrass and Derber, illuminate the basic issue of immoral morality. They show how throughout Western History, from Roman to British to American empires, traditional moralities have done harm in the name of good. These traditional empires have all lived by immoral moralities. Magrass and Derber illustrate how the born again philosophy (illustrated by Hitler's born again nation) and in a very different way, the Politically Correct, both in the guise of dogmatic big brothers, support empires and harmful traditional values. They silence opposition in the name of patriotism, god and topics that may not be discussed. Born agains and the politically correct take things off the table. In spite of a dismal past, Magrass and Derber pull success out of defeat and give us hope for optimism. They point to the possibility of a moral future. In Europe, there are signs of countries developing a moral morality after losing empires, that is, they do good in the name of good. As it loses wars and the power to dominate and exploit at home and abroad, the hope is that America too will develop a moral morality.

Satellite camera's view of political scene

This book offers a provocative historical framework for viewing our political scene. It not only spotlights the evil done in the name of morality, it focuses on the dynamics that create and help to perpetuate this "immoral morality" in our current disfunctional political system. It draws parallels with other times and places (e.g., Rome, the British Empire, Nazi Germany), allowing us learn not only from the similarities, but from the consequences. Although many of the individual points made in the book have been made elsewhere, I have not seen them brought together in such a clear, integrated way. The book prompts us to stand back, way back, to view our country and to understand it in terms of a complex of social and political dynamics that has surfaced before in human society. This book provides import insights into our current political and social dilemmas, but do enough of us and our leaders have enough of a philosophical and intellectual bent to profit from it? That is the question.

coins the term Immoral Morality

This is an exceptionally well-written development of the concept of "moral immorality;" the use of moral justifications for immoral actions. Derber and Magrass argue that the discourse of higher morality is used to justify any number of evil actions both historically and in contemporary America. They expose manipulative claims of moral superiority from government officials, right wing activists and leftist groups. The authors urge Americans to deconstruct the surface rhetoric in order to recognize each groups' real agenda.