problem 1:
there is a trolly that has run out of control. a villain from an old western that has tied up 5 people on the track. there is a side track though. on this side track though there is one person that another villain has tied up. Denise is standing by the track switch. if she does nothing, 5 people will be run over. if she throws the switch, the 5 will be saved, but the one tied to the side track will die. what is Denise's ethical response?
a) Denise should do nothing
b) Denise may throw the switch
c) Denise should throw the switch
please explain your reasoning.
I'm confused by one of the answers. One says she "may" throw the switch, and then one says she "should" throw the switch. Either she should throw the switch or she shouldn't... What's with the third, ambiguous answer?
Anyway, my answer is the bold one. She should throw the switch. But that is only my answer under the constraints of the survey. My belief is that surveys like these can not accurately gauge one's ethics. But it's still interesting.
She should not throw the switch because to throw the switch would be choosing to kill someone. Not acting allows others to die, but through no fault of her own. She didn't send the trolly out of control, or tie people to the tracks.
problem 2:
this is a similar situation as described above except there is no side track. Pat is standing on a bridge above the track, next to a very, very fat man. this man is fat enough that if he were pushed off the edge of the bridge, the trolly would hit him and stop, saving the lives of the 5 people tied to the track further down. what Pat's ethical response?
a) Pat should do nothing
b) Pat may push the fat man off the bridge
c) Pat should push the fat man off the bridge
please explain your reasoning.
Same reasoning as above.
problem 3:
again, another out of control trolly with five people tied to the track that will be killed if nothing is done. this time there is a side track but this side reconnects to the main line before the trolly reaches the 5 people. the fat man though is tied to the side track. if the trolly is diverted onto the side track, it will hit and kill the fat man, but it will be enough to stop the trolly. molly is standing by the track switch. what is molly's ethical response?
a) Molly should do nothing
b) Molly may switch the track
c) Molly should switch the track
please explain your reasoning.
Same reasoning.
problem 4:
Doug is a doctor, and a damn good one. he has five very healthy patients except that each one of them has one failing organ. with each of these five patients, a simple transplant surgery would solve their ailments, and all would be assured to go on to live a long life. without a transplant they will all surely die in the near future. the prospects of getting an organ from another source are all but nonexistent. there is a man down in the waiting room that, as it turns out, is a perfect match for all five patients. if Doug were to kill this man and transplant his organs into the five patients above, all of their lives would be saved. what is Doug's ethical response?
a) Doug should do nothing
b) Doug may kill the man for his organs
c) Doug should kill the man for his organs
please explain your reasoning.
Same reasoning as the rest of the questions. ...People die, that's part of life. It's better to accept that than sacrifice someone else who would otherwise live. Either way someone will die, whether it is one or few makes no difference to the individual. The difference, for the individual making the choice, is whether or not they were responsible for death.
problem 4:
there is a very famous violinist. he comes down with a fatal illness. this is a strange illness because there is a cure for it, but it a strange one. the violinist can be cured of this illness by being hooked up to William for a period of 13 months. during this time William would be bed ridden next to the violinist. if the violinist were unhooked before 13 months, it will immediately kill him. William is presented with this option, but William declines to allow the violinist to be attached to him. William is the only person on earth that can do this. during the night, a group of violin lovers sneaks into William's house, and attach the violinist to him against his will (the violinist is in a coma and had no knowledge or participation in this). what is William's ethical response?
a) William should do nothing (stay bed ridden for 13 months, allow violinist to live)
b) William may unhook the violinist (his option, either thing William did would be blameless)
c) William should unhook the violinist (thus killing the violinist)
If disconnecting him self from the man would instantly kill the man, William should do nothing.
problem 5:
not truly rich, Collin's one luxury in life is a vintage Mercedes sedan that, with much time, attention, and money, he's restored to mint condition... one day, Collin stops at the intersection of two small country roads, both lightly traveled. he hears a voice screaming for help, and gets out and sees a man who's wounded and covered with a lot of his own blood. assuring Collin that his wound is confined to one of his legs, the man also informs Collin that he was a medical student for two full years. and, despite his expulsion for cheating on his second year final exams, which explains his indigent status since, he's knowledgeably tied his shirt near the wound as to stop the flow. so, there's no urgent danger of losing his life, Collin is informed, but there's great danger of losing his limb. this can be prevented, however, if Collin drives him to a rural hospital fifty miles away. "How did the wound occur?" Collin asks. An avid bird-watcher, he admits that he trespassed on a nearby field and, in carelessly leaving, cut himself on rusty barbed wire. now, if Collin aided this trespasser, he must lay him across his fine back seat. But, then, the fine upholstery will be soaked through with blood, and restoring the car will cost over five thousand dollars. what is Collin's ethical response?
a) Collin should drive off (leaving the man to lose his leg, but probably not his life)
b) Collin may do either without blame
c) Collin should drive the man to the hospital (ruining his back seat but saving the man's leg)
please explain your answer.
Without even thinking about possible damage to the car, Collin should take the man to the hospital. A car seat is not that important and it can be fixed or replaced if needed. Legs are harder to reattach.
problem 6:
in Matthew's mailbox, there's something from UNICEF. After reading it through, Matthew correctly believes that, unless he soon sends in a check for $100, then, instead of each living many more years, over thirty more children will die soon. what is Matthew's ethical response?
a) Matthew should do nothing (allowing the 30+ children to die)
b) Matthew may do either without blame
c) Matthew should send in the money (saving the lives of the children)
please explain your answer.
Matthew could save hundreds of lives if he were to give every dollar away, but then he'd have no means to help him self of those closest to him. I'm assuming, like everyone else, Matthew gets lots of solicitations that claim such things. Matthew should save his money to help those that are important to him and have helped him.
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