Director, Environmental Studies
Professor of English

Environmental Studies 375: Ecosocial Advocacy

ALINKSY'S RULES OF THE ETHICS OF MEANS AND ENDS

From Saul D. Alinsky, Rules for Radical: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals. New York: Vintage, 1971. Chapter 2: “Of Means and Ends,” pp. 24-47.

“That perennial question, ‘Does the end justify the means?’ is meaningless as it stands; the real and only question regarding the ethics of means and ends is, and always has been, ‘Does this particular end justify this particular means?’” (24)

“The man of action views the issue of means and ends in pragmatic and strategic terms. He has no other problem; he thinks only of his actual resources and the possibilities of various choices of action. He asks of ends only whether they are achievable and worth the cost; of means, only whether they will work.” (24)

“in action, one does not always enjoy the luxury of a decision that is consistent both with one’s individual conscience and the good of mankind. The choice must always be fore the latter. Action is for mass salvation and not for the individual’s personal salvation.” (25)

“The means-and-ends moralists or non-doers always wind up on their ends without any means.” (25)

1. One’s concerns with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.

2. The judgment of the ethics of means is dependent upon the political position of those sitting in judgment.

3. In was the end justifies almost any means.

4. Judgment must be made in the context of the times in which the action occurred and not from any other chronological vantage point.

5. Concern with ethics increases with the number of means available and vice versa.

6. The less important the end to be desired, the more one can afford to engage in ethical evaluations of means.

7. Generally success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics.

8. The morality of a means depends upon whether the means is being employed at a time of imminent defeat or imminent victory.

9. Any effective means is automatically judged by the opposition as being unethical.

10. You do what you can with what you have and clothe it with moral garments.

11. Goals must be phrased in general terms like “ Liberty, Equality, Fraternity,” “Of the Common Welfare,” “Pursuit of Happiness,” or “Bread and Peace.”

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