This book articulates the Hippocratic Oath as establishing the medical profession by a promise to uphold an internal medical ethic that particularly prohibits doctors from killing. In its most basic and least controvertible form, this ethic mandates that physicians help and not harm the sick.

"Rare Storytelling...demands to be read at one sitting." - Chicago Sun-Times "Nobody does it better than Niven and Pournelle." -Tom Clancy "Exciting, swift and suspenseful." - Theodore Sturgeon In a dystopian future, where pollution and violen

The oath was an institution of fundamental importance across a wide range of social interactions throughout the ancient Greek world, making a crucial contribution to social stability and harmony; yet there has been no comprehensive, dedicated scholarly study of the subject for over a century. This volume of a two-volume study explores the nature of oaths as Greeks perceived it, the ways in which they were used (and sometimes abused) in Greek life and literature, and their inherent binding power.

I Swear: The Meaning of an Oath looks at how taking an oath may impact the obligations of the oath taker, and the perceptions and expectations of those around him. The book begins with Aeschylus - "It is not the oath that makes us believe the man, but the man the oath." The author explores whether Aeschylus was correct through stories of diverse and varied individuals who took an oath - doctor, lawyer, priest, journalist, CIA director, "made man," and president, to name a few. Most of the time, people are able to keep their oath. But what happens when the decision to keep an oath may result in an injustice, or a situation where others are hurt? What do your oaths mean to you, and what do they mean to those around you? Do societal pressures allow one to break his oath? What does your moral compass tell you to do when violating your oath is somehow the "right" thing to do, however wrong it is, because you're violating it?

The popular author of the Honor Harrington series tells the tale of Bahzell, a hsradani who has violated a hostage bond and now must deal with a vengeful prince and a price on his head. He doesn't want to mess with anyone else's problems, let alone the War God's. So how does he end up a thousand leagues from home? It's all the War God's fault.

This engaging book examines what the Hippocratic Oath meant to Greek physicians 2400 years ago and reflects on its relevance to medical ethics today. Drawing on the writings of ancient physicians, Greek playwrights, and modern scholars, each chapter explores one of its passages and concludes with a modern case discussion. The Oath proposes principles governing the relationship between the physician and society and patients. It rules out the use of poison and a hazardous abortive technique. It defines integrity and discretion in physicians' speech. The ancient Greek medical works written during the same period as the Oath reveal that Greek physicians understood that they had a duty to avoid medical errors and learn from bad outcomes. These works showed how and why to tell patients about their diseases and dire prognoses in order to develop a partnership for healing and to build the credibility of the profession. Miles uses these writings to illuminate the meaning of the Oath in its day and in so doing shows how and why it remains a valuable guide to the ethical practice of medicine. This is a book for anyone who loves medicine and is concerned about the ethics and history of this profession.

When the covenant was made with the Hunter God, all who dwelt in Breodanir swore to abide by it. The Hunter Lords—and the hunting dogs to which their minds were specially attuned—would seek out game in the God’s woods to provide food for their people, and the Hunter God would ensure that the Hunters, the land, and the people prospered. But in payment, once a year the Sacred Hunt must be called, the God’s own Hunt in which the prey became one of the Lords, or his huntbrother. This was the Hunter’s Oath, sworn by each Lord and his huntbrother—the companion chosen from the common folk to remind each Lord of his own ties to humanity. It was the Oath pledged in blood by Gilliam of Elseth and the orphan boy Stepehn—and the fulfillment of that Oath would lead them to the kind of destiny from which legends were made…

When she rescues Ronan VelKalevi, a telepathic Kinsman, from the shaauri, Captain Cynara D'Accorso is unprepared for the powerful attraction that rages between them, plunging them into a world of danger where their true destinies are revealed.

"This, quite simply, is the most devastating and detailed investigation into a question that has remained a no-no in the current debate on American torture in George Bush's war on terror: the role of military physicians, nurses and other medical personnel. Dr. Miles writes in a white rage, with great justification—but he lets the facts tell the story."—Seymour M. Hersh "Steven Miles has written exactly the book we require on medical complicity in torture. His admirable combination of scholarship and moral passion does great service to the medical profession and to our country."—Robert Jay Lifton, author of The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide and Home from the War: Vietnam Veterans - Neither Victims nor Executioners

“If law be the bedrock of civil society, it can no more undergird torture than it could support slavery or genocide.” –from the Introduction The graphic photographs of U.S. military personnel grinning over abused Arab and Muslim prisoners shocked the world community. That the United States was systematically torturing inmates at prisons run by its military and civilian leaders divided the nation and brought deep shame to many. When Steven H. Miles, an expert in medical ethics and an advocate for human rights, learned of the neglect, mistreatment, and torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, Guantánamo Bay, and elsewhere, one of his first thoughts was: “Where were the prison doctors while the abuses were taking place?” In Oath Betrayed, Miles explains the answer to this question. Not only were doctors, nurses, and medics silent while prisoners were abused; physicians and psychologists provided information that helped determine how much and what kind of mistreatment could be delivered to detainees during interrogation. Additionally, these harsh examinations were monitored by health professionals operating under the purview of the U.S. military. Miles has based this book on meticulous research and a wealth of resources, including unprecedented eyewitness accounts from actual victims of prison abuse, and more than thirty-five thousand pages of documentation acquired through provisions of the Freedom of Information Act: army criminal investigations, FBI notes on debriefings of prisoners, autopsy reports, and prisoners’ medical records. These documents tell a story markedly different from the official version of the truth, revealing involvement at every level of government, from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to the Pentagon’s senior health officials to prison health-care personnel. Oath Betrayed is not a denunciation of American military policy or of war in general, but of a profound betrayal of traditions that have shaped the medical corps of the United States armed forces and of America’s abdication of its leadership role in international human rights. This book is a vital document that will both open minds and reinvigorate Americans’ understanding of why human rights matter, so that we can reaffirm and fortify the rules for international civil society. “This, quite simply, is the most devastating and detailed investigation into a question that has remained a no-no in the current debate on American torture in George Bush’s war on terror: the role of military physicians, nurses, and other medical personnel. Dr. Miles writes in a white rage, with great justification–but he lets the facts tell the story.” –Seymour M. Hersh, author of Chain of Command “Steven Miles has written exactly the book we require on medical complicity in torture. His admirable combination of scholarship and moral passion does great service to the medical profession and to our country.” –Robert Jay Lifton, M.D., author of The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide, and co-editor of Crimes of War: Iraq From the Hardcover edition.