ABSTRACT
One area of definitional vagueness is the notion of a Professional Military Ethic (PME), which might, in its broadest sense, be seen as encompassing the relationship between the profession of arms and the principles and values that provide its moral basis. This chapter explores the relationship between the military and their Ethic in an effort to provide a better understanding of the part that this construct may play in the ethical education and development of the professional military. The central contention of the chapter is that the PME may provide both a moral and ethical foundation for behaviours that are intrinsically tied to the concept of professionalism. At the heart of the PME is the concept of moral authority and its derivation. Developing moral expertise in serving personnel provides the ethical 'shield' against immoral acts when fighting an enemy that neither recognises nor complies with the rules of war, and even in the absence of likely punishment for non-compliance.
