Description
Book SynopsisA broadly liberal politics requires political compassion, not simply in the sense of compassion for the victims of injustice but also for opponents confronted through political protest and (more broadly) dissent. There are times when, out of a sense of compassion, a just cause should not be pressed.
There are times when we need to accommodate the dreadfulness of loss for opponents, even when the cause for which they fight is unjust. We may also have to come to terms with the irreversibility of historic injustice and reconcile. Political compassion of this sort carries risks. Pushed too far, it may weaken our commitment to justice through too great a sympathy for those on the other side. It would be convenient if such compassion could be constrained by a clear set of political principles. But principles run the quite different risk of promoting an ossified dissent,' unable to respond to change.
In this book, Tony Milligan argues that principles are only a limited guide to
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter One - The Fable of the Colonial Ethicists
Chapter Two - The Very Idea of Dissent
Chapter Three - Skepticism about Political Ethics
Chapter Four - Assumptions about Moral Superiority
Chapter Five - Gaining Concepts: Appeals to Ahimsa
Chapter Six - Political Grief and the Removal of Statues
Chapter Seven - Between Politics and Love
Conclusion
