I'd respect my son's wishes.
After that I'd go blithering insane with grief, anger and guilt.
One could argue this dilemma rather dispassionately, though, and make the decision based on the fact that the son has had the chance to live much more of his life than his daughter. It's be 'fairer' to let the train squish the son.
Would you respect your son's wishes in this situation?
Dave The Canuck
2012/09/11 19:24:19
|
|
|||||
|
23 votes
|
|
77% | |||
|
1 vote
|
|
3% | |||
|
6 votes
|
|
20% | |||
There is a train that, much to your horror, is about to run over your grown up son, who has been tied to its track. It just so happens that you have just enough time to flip a switch that will send the train down a different track, saving your son. However, tied to the other track, is your granddaughter, the daughter of the very son in danger of being run over. Your son is begging and pleading with you not to flip the switch, not to kill his daughter. What would you do?
Top Opinion
-
Transquesta 2012/09/15 07:24:45
[People glare with confusion]
What? The reader is forced to make a lot of assumptions about the situation. Three, for example, are:
ASSUMES the granddaughter is tied close to the switch in question, and that you and your two descendants are the only people to be found in this situation - nowhere in the description is a note about the amount of space you're working in actually given, nor is a note about the total number of people defined. Therefore, you could safely argue that because there's a possibility your granddaugher is tied a long ways down the track, and possibility a friend of yours is with you, you could flip the switch and still have enough time for your friend to cut your daughter free.
(Any other case, though, I'd respect his wishes and let the train mow him over instead of his daughter.)
After that I'd go blithering insane with grief, anger and guilt.
One could argue this dilemma rather dispassionately, though, and make the decision based on the fact that the son has had the chance to live much more of his life than his daughter. It's be 'fairer' to let the train squish the son.