Author: Mr. Lakhaney

TOK Teacher

If Germany Atoned for the Holocaust, the U.S. Can Pay Reparations for Slavery

August 12, 2021

Calls for reparations in the U.S. are generally met with skepticism: What would reparations achieve? Who should receive them, and under what conditions?

Other countries have tackled these questions. In 1995, South Africa established its Truth and Reconciliation Commission and paid reparations to the victims of apartheid. Eight years before, the United States apologized to 82,000 Japanese Americans unduly imprisoned during World War II and paid them US$20,000 each to compensate for their suffering.

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/if-germany-atoned-holocaust-us-can-pay-reparations-slavery-82526

Principles of the Just War (and additional readings)

August 12, 2021
  • A just war can only be waged as a last resort. All non-violent options must be exhausted before the use of force can be justified.
  • A war is just only if it is waged by a legitimate authority. Even just causes cannot be served by actions taken by individuals or groups who do not constitute an authority sanctioned by whatever the society and outsiders to the society deem legitimate.
  • A just war can only be fought to redress a wrong suffered. For example, self-defense against an armed attack is always considered to be a just cause (although the justice of the cause is not sufficient–see point #4). Further, a just war can only be fought with “right” intentions: the only permissible objective of a just war is to redress the injury.
  • A war can only be just if it is fought with a reasonable chance of success. Deaths and injury incurred in a hopeless cause are not morally justifiable.
  • The ultimate goal of a just war is to re-establish peace. More specifically, the peace established after the war must be preferable to the peace that would have prevailed if the war had not been fought.
  • The violence used in the war must be proportional to the injury suffered. States are prohibited from using force not necessary to attain the limited objective of addressing the injury suffered.
  • The weapons used in war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants. Civilians are never permissible targets of war, and every effort must be taken to avoid killing civilians. The deaths of civilians are justified only if they are unavoidable victims of a deliberate attack on a military target.

https://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/pol116/justwar.htm

Are amnesties in Latin America always a bad idea? ($)

August 12, 2021

Any civilised society must try to punish such horrors. But in ending internal conflicts, peace, reconciliation and truth are as important as justice. There is often a trade-off. Rebels and dictators often refuse to give up unless they are promised amnesty. Moral imperative is thus tempered by political feasibility. And the politics is not getting much easier.

https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2019/06/29/are-amnesties-in-latin-america-always-a-bad-idea

Unit Plan: The Cost of Water

August 12, 2021

This inquiry leads students through an investigation of water access in the Middle East using various sources that consider geographical, political and economic issues. By investigating the compelling question, students examine the geography of the region, including environmental and demographic relationships, the ecological impact of accessing water, and the subsequent political conflicts over control of natural resources. By completing this inquiry, students begin to understand issues revolving around access and control of resources, such as the consequences of power struggles that befall countries with limited access to water resources.

http://c3teachers.org/inquiries/cost-of-water/

Planet Money Podcast: Hong Kong

August 12, 2021

Jimmy was born in mainland China. In 1960, when he was 12 years old, he snuck out of China and into Hong Kong by hiding in the bottom of a fishing boat. The day he got to Hong Kong, he got a job in a factory. By the time he was 21, he was running a factory. Today, he’s one of the richest people in Hong Kong. He’s also one of the most vocal critics of the Chinese government, and a major figure in Hong Kong’s protest movement.

Jimmy Lai’s story is the story of Hong Kong. And Hong Kong’s story is the story of the 200-year-long history of China and with the West — a story of communism, colonialism, and capitalism.

https://www.npr.org/2019/07/19/743480237/episode-928-hong-kong