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About this quote

What does it mean?
Humans created tools of destruction and moral concepts like duty that justify violence.
In plain terms
People made weapons and used rules like duty to justify killing.
What can you take from it?
Question moral justifications for violence.

Where it applies

  • conflict resolution
  • moral education

Putting it to work

  • critique patriotic rhetoric
  • examine duty versus harm

Questions to consider

  • Does duty justify harm?
  • How do we frame war?

Another view

Moral concepts also prevent violence.

More from George Bernard Shaw

  1. What is his religion? An excuse for hating ME. What is his law? An excuse for hanging YOU. What is his morality? Gentility! an excuse for consuming without pro…

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  2. Man gives every reason for his conduct save one, every excuse for his crimes save one, every plea for his safety save one; and that one is his cowardice. Yet a…

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  3. In the arts of peace Man is a bungler. I have seen his cotton factories and the like, with machinery that a greedy dog could have invented if it had wanted mon…

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