John Locke on Peace in Iraq

Paper Summary:

This paper considers the possibility that the Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds of Iraq could work together under a central government but admits that it is almost too much to hope for. The paper discusses how Iraq's struggle to unify the differing factions to craft a central government could be guided by John Locke's "Two Treatises of Government" whereby its citizens will have the liberty to defer their rights to a central government in exchange for the peace of law and order. The paper emphasizes that the United States must finally leave Iraq in order to give the Iraqis their chance to seek the possibility of John Locke's idealism that establishes a peaceful existence.

From the Paper:

"As much as the United States would like to refute the existence of the stabilized government under the Saddam Hussein regime, Iraq did function as an authoritarian government. Yes, it is true that atrocities did take place under Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led minority regime, which means that Iraqi citizens were not being protected. In contrast, despite the efforts of the United States to rebuild Iraq's infrastructure and to implement the Coalition Provisional Authority, the Iraqi government has been unable to put together a government that maintains central control and is influenced by a coalition of states. Russell contends that what is currently happening in Iraq is "an uncontrollably escalating war in a country fractured by the internal divisions of religion, ethnicity, and tribe and by the external interference of foreign insurgents, occupiers, and neighbors" (par. 9)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Locke, John. Two Treatises of Government. Ed. Peter Laslett. New York: Cambridge UP, 1988.
• Russell, James. "Shibboleth Slaying in a Post-Saddam Iraq." Center for Contemporary Conflict. June 2007. 21 July 2008 <http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/june07/ middle /East.asp>.
• Snyder, David. "The War on Terror: Tensions in the Social Contract Post-September 11."Diss. Haverford College, 2004. 21 July 2008 <http://64.233.167.104/search?: 1xaYME3AQO4J:triceratops.brynmawr.edu/dspace/bitstream/10066/733/1/2004SnyderD.pdf+War+in+Iraq+John+Locke+state+of+war+unnatural&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us>.

More papers on John Locke on Peace in Iraq:

• Persuasive Essay # 116652 : "Peace in Iraq"
• Essay # 38114 : "John Locke: On Government"

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