The Ethics of Military Privatization ─ The US Armed Contractor Phenomenon

While privatization is not a new concept for the U.S. military, the public debate on military privatization is limited, focused on legal, financial, and pragmatic concerns, such as oversight. Missing is a critical assessment of the ethical dimensions of military privatization in general; more specifically, in light of the increased reliance upon armed contractors, it must be asked whether it is morally permissible for governments to employ them at all. To this end, Barnes explores four areas that highlight the ethical implications of using armed contractors: - How Armed Contractors are distinct from Soldiers and Mercenaries - The Commodification of Force - The Belligerent Equality of Combatants - The Impact of Armed Contractors on the Professional Military Some may want to take an absolutist position, barring the use of private military altogether. While these types of arguments may satisfy many opponentsa€? intuitions against privatized force, these absolutist arguments are problematic. Furthermore, there seem to be circumstances, so dire, that turning to private force may be the only option. Thus, as will be clear to the reader, this study takes a consequentialist approach to this multidisciplinary armed contractor debate.

David M. Barnes is a career US Army officer and Assistant Professor at the United States Military Academy. He has a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Colorado, USA.