The dependence of these principles of justice upon their usefulness in meeting the needs of society rather than some characteristic of nature apart from human needs can be seen from the fact that their strict enforcement is suspended whenever there are more important needs which cannot be satisfied by obedience to them. For example, in the event of a flood or a famine, people do not hesitate to appropriate whatever goods are available and necessary in order to prevent starvation or to supply whatever it takes in order to preserve human life. This is done in spite of the fact that under normal circumstances actions of this kind would be regarded as a clear violation of the principles of justice. What is known as property rights are likewise set aside in the event of a shipwreck or any other disaster in which human life is endangered.
Self-preservation always takes precedence over the principles of justice. The latter are regarded as binding only when they are able to serve as means toward the satisfaction of those ends which are considered to be of the greatest importance.
This point is illustrated again in the attitude taken by society toward the punishment of criminals. The appropriate action in regard to those who have violated the laws of the land is to deprive them of their property, their liberty, and in extreme cases even of life itself. To do these things to law-abiding citizens would indeed be contrary to the principles of justice, but in the case of criminals these principles are suspended because it is a necessary means for the protection of society. International warfare provides another instance in which the principles of justice are suspended in the interests of achieving victory over the enemy. Nations that are at war with one another have no scruples about deceiving their enemies or destroying their property and taking possession of their land.
In other words, the principles of justice are disregarded when they are not useful to the interests of those who are involved in the conflict. In all of these instances, it is evident that the rules of equity and justice owe their origin and their existence to the utility which results from their use. This is true no matter what the original state of human nature may have been. Whether the first state of humanity was the type represented by the golden age of ancient legends or that of a "war of all against all" as set forth in the writings of Thomas Hobbes, the origin and status of the principles of justice is essentially the same.
