Think of the Ethics

Last time i posted i had a few questions up that i wanted people to think about. Not many people really went into them but i want to bring them up anyway.

1. A man stands on a platform watching as 5 people are about to get run over by a train. He looks to his right and sees a lever. If he pulls the lever, the train will switch tracks. However, on those tracks there is a single man who will not have time to get out of the way. Should the man pull the lever? Would you pull the lever?

2. In a similar situation, a man stands on a platform watching as 5 people are about to get run over by a train, but now there is no lever and a man stands next to him. The first man has a choice. If he pushes the other man onto the tracks that man will die but the train will come to a stop and the five people will be saved. Should he do it? Would you do it?

3. Is there a difference between these two questions when it comes to your moral judgement?

My responses to those questions are quite simple i believe. To the first question i believe we should first get a grasp on what kind of people are on the tracks. If the large grouping of people are mostly homeless, drug users, and criminals and the one person is a Doctor who donates his time and money to help the poor then we should obviously save the one doctor at that point. What i suggest is you give each human being a value. (If insurance companies can do it and make billions then i can too.) If the value of the group out weighs the value of the individual than sacrifice the individual to save the group.

Your allowed to go anything to set up what a value would be or how you achieved your ranking. A loved one would rank higher than anything else due to their value to you as a human being. A person you hate could be a doctor who donates their money and time but you still hate them and would prefer to see them dead.

The point of the second question is to see if there is a difference between just pulling the lever and the physical act of pushing someone off. The belief is that by actually having to push the person to their death you may decide to not do it. There is no difference between question 1 and 2. It is simply how we perceive the action.

We'll talk again soon. Good luck justifying your life and actions.