Dr Strangelove ~ make up post

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is a 1964 political satire in which Air Force General Jack Ripper becomes paranoid and issues a nuclear attack on Russia, though he has no authority to do so on his own. When a captain tries to stop him, Ripper talks about the reasons behind his actions. One reason he mentions is that he believes the Russians are trying to “pollute” America through their drinking water. After they realize Ripper is insane, they try to stop the attack because they feel it is not justified at this time. 


In War and Massacre, Thomas Nagel talks about some of the issues brought up in Dr. Strangelove, such as the justification of war. According to Nagel, utilitarianism is a viewpoint in which one sees himself as benevolent and in control. In utilitarianism, treatment does not have to be justified or appropriate, as it would in absolutism. In Dr. Strangelove we see an example what Nagel was referring to. A delusional General Ripper and the rest of the military believed themselves and their nation to be above the Russians and therefore did not need proper justification in their decisions.