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Do you think it is ethical to work for a company that builds drones, weaponry, or supplies parts to the military?
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Of course not
this post was submitted on 01 Mar 2024
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This is something I wrestle with sometimes as an engineering student and I think it does vary from country to country. You’ve got to ask yourself how the world would be different without those companies - whether other less friendly countries would come to prominence and whether the removal of the such a deterrence would make wars more common. But on the other hand, you should think about how those weapons are used and whether it’s ‘right’ like the defence of Ukraine, or more objectionable like some of the more polarising conflicts around the world. It’s a very difficult question but personally I don’t think I would work for a weapons company coz I don’t know how I’d feel about making something that is designed to kill people
If you're worried about ethics, it's going to be very difficult finding a job that will make you a living that is ethical.
I mean... you can upstream everything. I work for a place that sells outdoor sports gear. Pretty benign unless you do a deep dive into supply chains and the like.
For the record, I did work at a place the built parts for cruise missiles. It sucked. I quit
Some military devices help prevent conflict and minimize its harm. A lot of modern warfare is increasing situational awareness. For example, radar, night vision, surveillance, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, tactical communications, and signals intelligence. Of course, these technologies can be used in a way that harms as well. But the alternative is a blind slugfest that probably harms a lot more civilians and friendly fire.
Ah yes. Bigger, better, more deadly weapons will definitely help reduce deaths.
It's all just lining the pockets of weapons manufacturers.
No - it's not ethical.
Very little evil is actually a direct result of evil people doing evil things. The vast majority of it comes to be through ordinary people doing banal things - things that, like building weapons, are questionable at best, but that they excuse because it's "out of my control."
The thing is that it's not out of their control. Yes - if one individual makes the decision to not take part, that's not going to have much of an effect, but if every person who feels the same way makes that same choice, that absolutely WILL have an effect.
And there's only one way to make it so that every person who feels the same way makes that choice, and that's for each one of them, individually, to look past that "it's out of my control" bullshit excuse and go ahead and do it.
Everything on any significant scale is out of individual control. Individuals just possess a very limited amount of control over affairs on a national, much less global, scale. But that's really entirely beside the point. The point is how you choose to exercise the small amount of control you have. Will you use it for good, or for evil?
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Was the reason I quit my last job.
no and ive always refused to do it but actually im fucked now so maybe i would
Collectively, no. Personally, yes. People deserve to make a living.
As a Buddhist no it's absolutely not, as trading in weapons is specifically prohibited by the Right Livelihood part of the Noble Eightfold Path. Otherwise I see no problem.
It depends on whether the military you’re selling it to behave ethically.
Weapons aren’t inherently bad. Every organism has weapons. It’s all about how you use them.
If it was to like the Japanese self defense force? Sure.
If it's to the US and going towards bombing civilians all across the world? Hell no.
Yes. I don't want my effort to be dedicated to death and destruction. Imagine you're the guy who designed the iconic Tomahawk cruise missile. You can't mistake that profile. Every time you see or hear about one of those things being launched you know there's a good chance many people are going to die. Who wants that on their conscience?
There's a difference, in my opinion, between designing a weapon and just being a generic worker at the company.
As a generic worker, the end result isn't any different whether it was you or someone else. For example, I don't think a guy who works at a Tesla factory could be considered responsible if the self driving malfunctions and kills someone. He might have directly contributed to the car that got built, but if he didn't work that job the car would have still been made and the tragedy would still have happened.
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It's ethical, the parts will be made whether you work that job or not, and you're only responsible for the actions of the military to the extent that you're able to change them.
Since none of your reasonable options will make an impact on the production or use of those items, it's not a ethical issue for you to work there.
What matters much more is your ability to provide for yourself and those around you.
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Hell no
Depends on the country.