Cold War Insights

Michael J. Butler uses Just War theory to analyze how the decision to go to war was framed for public consumption in three recent U.S. military interventions: the Gulf War, Kosovo, and Afghanistan. He shows how presenting operations as legitimate and virtuous has proven to be a highly salient, adaptable, and therefore effective mechanism for manufacturing societal support. This crucial component of foreign policy allows the President to sustain an effective monopoly over war decisions for the continued primacy of military force in U.S.

Michael J. Butler uses Just War theory to analyze how the decision to go to war was framed for public consumption in three recent U.S. military interventions: the Gulf War, Kosovo, and Afghanistan. He shows how presenting operations as legitimate and virtuous has proven to be a highly salient, adaptable, and therefore effective mechanism for manufacturing societal support.