Principles should apply to everyone

Re: Canada calls for ‘restraint’ in Iran following death of military chief Soleimani, Jan. 3.

Will the killing of Qassem Soleimani lead to increased tensions with Iran? Of course. Will this lead to cycles of retribution and more deaths? Very likely. But sometimes assassination is a lesser evil; would we have been better off with Adolf Hitler or Pol Pot eliminated before they rose to power? Certainly.

The problem is, I am not sure how bad a person Soleimani was. Was he responsible for all the deaths suggested by the American government? Was he planning further attacks, putting westerners at risk? How can we separate propaganda from reality? In the absence of reliable information, I believe that we have to impartially consider the morality of this action by the United States.

(Philosopher) Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative states: “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can, at the same time, will that it should become a universal law.”

In other words, act only in a way that would be acceptable if everyone acted in the same manner.

Many of us considered the invasion of Iraq in 2003 to be immoral and wrong. Would it have been acceptable for a Baathist to assassinate George W. Bush, or Donald Rumsfeld, or Tony Blair? The U.S. military has used drones to attack citizens of Pakistan, Syria, Somalia and Yemen in recent years, with whom we are not at war.

What would be our response if Bush or Barack Obama were murdered in retaliation?

I work hard to teach my young daughter to be a moral person and abide by such philosophies. I wish these same principles would be considered by our leaders.

Steve Kravcik, Manotick