Skip to content

We simply don't know whether nuclear weapons have been effective as a deterrent...whether they are effective today or can be expected to be so in the future. Nuclear policy has for years been framed in ignorance of the facts most central to its justification.

— Robert L. Holmes

Another quote →

More quotes by Robert L. Holmes

Plausible moral theory must have at its center a concern for the lives and well-being of persons.

On War and Morality (1989)

It is presumptively wrong to do violence to innocent persons.

On War and Morality (1989)

To be a pragmatic pacifist, one need only consider that large-scale, organized, and systemic war violence is unacceptable in today's world.

Pacifism: A Philosophy of Nonviolence (2017)

We will never know whether there is a realistic moral alternative to violence unless we are willing to explore the potential of nonviolent action.

On War and Morality (1989)

A necessary condition of the justifiable pursuit of any objectives in war by any means whatever.. is that one be justified in engaging in such killing and violence in the first place.

On War and Morality (1989)

All Robert L. Holmes quotes →

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Robert L. Holmes (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.