Ron Paul on the Just War Tradition

Ron Paul, it seems, bases his crticisims of the Iraq war on Just War doctrine:

This is from an article he wrote concerning his Christian faith for The Covenant News (http://www.covenantnews.com/ronpaul070721.htm):

"I have also acted to protect the lives of Americans by my adherence to the doctrine of “just war.” This doctrine, as articulated by Augustine, suggested that war must only be waged as a last resort--- for a discernible moral and public good, with the right intentions, vetted through established legal authorities (a constitutionally required declaration of the Congress), and with a likely probability of success.It has been and remains my firm belief that the current United Nations-mandated, no-win police action in Iraq fails to meet the high moral threshold required to wage just war. That is why I have offered moral and practical opposition to the invasion, occupation and social engineering police exercise now underway in Iraq. It is my belief, borne out by five years of abject failure and tens of thousands of lost lives, that the Iraq operation has been a dangerous diversion from the rightful and appropriate focus of our efforts to bring to justice to the jihadists that have attacked us and seek still to undermine our nation, our values, and our way of life."

Brian's note: There is much more to Just War Doctrine than the above, of course, but it reveals that Paul's criticisms of the war are grounded in something deeper than his weak libertarian philosophy of government. If he would only reconsider some of his libertarian views in light of other political teachings that we have inhereted from the Christian tradition!