While in the current discussion human rights are often seen as the sole justification for military interventions or global organizational forms, Ingeborg Maus argues in her new book that human rights can only be realized in conjunction with democracy and peace. An aggressive human rights policy against states that do not adhere to Western standards undermines the principle of human rights itself. Furthermore, given the heterogeneity of the international state system, Maus believes that the much-debated establishment of a world state can only be achieved at the risk of a new world war. A passionate and contentious book.