PHL 205 - CONTEMPORARY MORAL ISSUES
SECOND EXAM STUDY GUIDE
SPRING 2013

TERRORISM: What motivated the perpetrators of the Boston Marathon attack? How was the attack carried out? How might the attack have been prevented? Were there any failures of law enforcement, intelligence or national security systems or was this an unforeseeable tragedy? Was this the only attack they planned? What motivated terrorists recently apprehended in Canada within days of the Boston attack? What did they plan to do? What plan did Mohamed Mohmaud plan in Portland? What issues did he raise at his appeal?

According to Mideast scholar Robert Spencer, is Islam "a religion of peace." What motivates Mideast terrorism according to Spencer? What does changes have taken place in the Jewish and Christian worlds which he would like to see in the Muslim world?

What does the poll listed in Moodle of British Muslims reveal about their attitudes towards the 7/7 bombings and Shariah? What does the Pew study reveal about Islamic attitudes worldwide towards extremist groups and modernistic ideas?

What is modernity? Are there any aspects of the development of Islam which might explain it's failure to embrace modernity and its association with terrorism in the modern age? If so, what are they? Are these aspects different in Judaism and Christianity? What do the core texts of Islam say about religious violence? Are there similar passages in the Old Testament? If so, why isn't there a proliferation of Jewish and Christian terrorists?

What is Shariah? What does it say about those who leave the Islamic faith? What does it say about the rules of warfare? How do terrorists interpret these passages?

What are some ways in which the instructor suggested Homeland Security and the Administration may be ineffective in dealing with terrorism? What might explain the administration's approach?

What, according to the instructor, should we focus on to effectively combat terrorism? What reasons does he give for this being a more effective strategy?

FOREIGN POLICY: What are some of the chief criticisms of American Foreign Policy? What are the arguments for an interventionist and non-interventionist foreign policy? How might its current policy be characterized? Who are the chief recipients of military aid? Where does America have troops? Why are they there?

How has America's support for dictators and rebels based on circumstances and perceived national interest led to disastrous consequences? Are there any examples of America being involved in a foreign war which most people regard as necessary and even beneficial? What motivated the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq?

What possible dangers are posed by Iran and North Korea? What arguments are used to justify only certain countries being allowed to have nuclear weapons? Which country is the only country to have used nuclear weapons on a civilian population? What justification was given? According to the instructor, why is thinking of countries as having rights a fallacy?

Where did Syria probably get its chemical weapons, recently used to suppress an uprising? Who has been sending Afghan President Hamid Karzai bags of cash? What's the controversy surrounding the embassy attack in Benghazi, Libya? What explanations or theories are there about the U.S. response? Why do the TSA, Patriot Act, NDAA and (recently defeated) CISPA outrage, concern or worry civil libertarians and Constitutionalists?