Science, Politics, and Swift Boats • P. T. Jackson • Page 39
context. Hence, saying that both sides of the controversy are advancing inaccurate
accounts actually weighs in on the side of Kerry’s accusers by providing ammunition
for a charge that he is not entirely truthful. It would be better to advance against the
very notion that the events of one day in Vietnam 35 years ago has much to do with
Kerry’s fitness to be President, and try to refocus the debate on the potential
implications of the value-orientation that Kerry (and his opponent) is promulgating. In
this way we can strive for a politics beyond classical objectivity, in which the social
sciences have the critical role of clarifying choices and helping to envision possible
future worlds from which we might choose—and the irreducibly moral and cultural
grounds on which we might do so.
References
Aronson, Jerrold L., Rom Harre, and Eileen Cornell Way (1995). Realism Rescued: How
Scientific Progress is Possible. Chicago: Open Court.
Barkawi, Tarak, and Mark Laffey (1999). “The Imperial Peace: Democracy, Force, and
Globalization.” European Journal of International Relations 5:4, pp. 403-434.
Beer, Francis A., and Robert Hariman, eds. (1996). Post-Realism: The Rhetorical Turn in
International Relations. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press.
Bhaskar, Roy (1989). Reclaiming Reality. London: Verso.
Bhaskar, Roy (1998). The Possibility of Naturalism, third ed. London: Routledge.
Chernoff, Fred (2002). “Scientific Realism as a Meta-Theory of International Politics.”
International Studies Quarterly 46:2, pp. 189-207.
Dahms, Hans-Joachim (1994). Positivismusstreit. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp.
Dobbs, Michael (2004a). “Kerry's War Record.”
http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-
srv/zforum/04/politics_dobbs082304.htm
. Accessed 23 August 2004.
Dobbs, Michael (2004b). “Swift Boat Accounts Incomplete.” The Washington Post, section
A.
Convention