Poll: Would you push the button?
- Thread starter Evilbunny
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I don't know if I would or not, but it's a case of Big Red Button Syndrome. It says 'Do Not Push' but you just have to know what will happen when you do push it.
And sometimes you'll push it twice, just in case.
And sometimes you'll push it twice, just in case.
I just lsot my faith in humanity... again.
And here i was, naive enough to consider this forum above the average shit-infested holes called internet forums.
on a second thought, do i get to decide who dies when i push it? if so i might conside rchanging my answer.
And here i was, naive enough to consider this forum above the average shit-infested holes called internet forums.
on a second thought, do i get to decide who dies when i push it? if so i might conside rchanging my answer.
Everyone who uses this train of thought is completely missing the point of this thread. I realize some people are more grounded in reality than others but what I am asking you to do here is suspend your disbelief for one second and pretend that the button actually works. When you push that button, somebody in the world magically dies a horrible death. You are included in this lottery. What you are supposed to do is question how moral your really are. How much do you care about other human beings? The chances of you or somebody you know being killed are astronomical but the person that dies could have had a wife and family that's going to miss them. Nobody is trying to trick you in this scenario it's a question of morality.trelloskilos said:
Actually, no. I haven't included any additional background. The scenario is, you're in a room. There's another guy and a button. You are told that if you press the button, someone in the world will die. Nothing more, nothing less.Damien the Pigeon said:
As I said, elaborating on the variables will produce different results. Say it was for a dollar, or for $1m dollars. Say it was a case that if you DIDN'T press the button, you would be killed...or a friend or relative.
The question may be hypothetical, but the experiment, to me, is not about morality. It's about gullibility.
I've based this on a famous experiment that actually did take place.
In this experiment, the subject was placed in a room, with a button, and a voltmeter. The subject was told that in the next room, there was someone sitting in an electric chair, with electrodes taped to their body. The scientist in the room with subject would tell the subject to press the button. Each time the button was pressed, the voltage would increase.
During the experiment, the subject could hear the person strapped to the chair, and when the voltage got really high, the subject would hear the screaming. At some point, the screaming would stop altogether, and there would just be silence from the next room.
What was of interest to the scientists was the high percentage (something like 78%) of the subjects tested continued to press the button even though the screaming had stopped, and there was no longer any sound coming from the other side of the wall, and when the levels of voltage were considered lethal.
Of course, the person in the next room was an actor. Nobody was hurt in the experiment. However, the subject didn't know that. There was no offer of money. The subject was merely following orders.
A few people stated that they continued to press the button because they strongly believed that the setup was...well..set up, and they were right. However, of the people who were fooled, only a minority stopped pressing the button when they became concerned at the person on the other side of the wall. The vast majority kept on pressing.
I am not a violent or morally corrupt person by nature, but I confess that if I didn't know it was an act, I would have probably been in the majority. Anyone who reckons they would have stopped is either a saint, or is delusional. The experiment proved that a) People will do anything if commanded, as long as they can defer responsibility on someone else (i.e I pressed the button because the Scientist told me to!), and b) People really are gullible!
Now, I know that for the purposes of a debate on a computer games forum, I'm asked to suspend my belief for a sec. My tuppence worth is that I don't buy into all this "No, I wouldn't press the button because it is morally wrong" crap that a lot of people are saying. Because it is a hypothetical question, it is an easy (& obvious) moral answer, and unfortunately, people seem to have fallen into that trap. Besides, the topic would be boring if everyone said the same thing!The same people who would wish for fairness & justice, but who would rather switch over the TV than watch a charity appeal for the starving in Ethiopia. Hypothesis vs. Reality are two very different things!
Just imagine...REALLY imagine, that for a moment, you ARE actually in that situation. That tomorrow, you are sitting in that lab instead of at work/school, and you actually have to make that choice. Even the most moral of us human beings would be tempted & consider pressing the button.
In my answer, I am acknowledging my fallibility as a human being. I'm not a saint. If it turned out that my assumption was wrong, and someone did actually die as a direct result of my actions, you bet I would feel guilty. However, at least I'm not pretending that I am a model citizen & morally untainted....or a hypocrite!
Ok, the point of this thread was not to see how gullible you are. It really is about morality. I want you to pretend that the button does actually kill somebody and you get $100 when you do. You know this for a fact when given the choice. You're making this more complicated than it is.trelloskilos said:
Wimps.Think logically here.
1. It never says you won't be the one to die.
2. It never says where the dollar bill lands,could be in your toilet.
3. The button may be a trap.
4. Loved ones could die.
But still,rig it up to a machine,and if dollars spawn in same place,make a bag.
1. It never says you won't be the one to die.
2. It never says where the dollar bill lands,could be in your toilet.
3. The button may be a trap.
4. Loved ones could die.
But still,rig it up to a machine,and if dollars spawn in same place,make a bag.
No, a life is worth more than money. If the people I inadvertently killed deserved it, then no harm done. But the thread says random, for all you know it's someone close to you.
Once every week.
I figure someone dies horribly every day, one person dying horribly every week isn't that bad.
I also suppress my guilty conscience like a god.
I figure someone dies horribly every day, one person dying horribly every week isn't that bad.
I also suppress my guilty conscience like a god.
Actually, I'm playing a bit of a Devil's Advocate here. I love a good debate, and this is an interesting subject.Evilbunny said:
As I said in my last post, the question is hypothetical. The reality is very different.
The obvious answer that is expected off anyone is "No, I would not press the button because it is morally wrong" blah blah blah. I am merely calling 'bullshit' on all those people who haven't thought about it, and just plumped for the good and easy answer. Yes, I may be making it more complicated than it actually is, but I'm damned if I'm going to provide an obvious & elementary answer just because you are demanding one from me.
At least in my replies, I demonstrate that I have actually thought about it, weighed up my own fallibility, and considered the variables. I may have set myself up to be flamed, but at least I have provided a sensible, reasonable and realistic answer to the posts.