NationStates Jolt Archive

If you had to choose between ending your own life or that of an innocent person of approximately the same age, what would you do?

Edit: a non-decision leads to your own death
Edit: the killing would be done with a pistol

Easy. Mine. But you might be asking the wrong person here...

Depends on the person. I wouldn't save Hitler or a young Bush, for example.

If you had to choose between ending your own life or that of an innocent person of approximately the same age, what would you do?
Who's the innocent person? If I don't get to find out, he/she dies and I live.

For the purposes of this thread, lets say they are a stranger.

Depends on the person. I wouldn't save Hitler or a young Bush, for example.
You wouldn't know them.

I'd flip a coin. :)

You wouldn't know them.
Then I'd definately kill the other person.:sniper:

I'd kill the other person, of course.

The question might better be phrased as: Do you have a survival instinct?

are you suggesting that *I* am not innocent??

If you had to choose between ending your own life or that of an innocent person of approximately the same age, what would you do?
Refuse to choose.

I'd kill the other person, of course.

The question might better be phrased as: Do you have a survival instinct?

And my answer still would be "no"...

Refuse to choose.
In which case it would mean your death.

I'd kill off the innocent person. If I hadn't done anything, and this other person hadn't done anything then why would I choose them over me.

are you suggesting that *I* am not innocent??
What if I was? ;)

I'd flip a coin. :)
Wish I'd thought of that...

I'd curse whoever set up the situation for being so lame and emo.

if i didn't know them and their family would never figure out i killed that stranger, he would die.

if i knew them, depends who it was:sniper:

It'd probably depend more on the situation.

Would my death be instantaneous/painless? I'd be much more likely to sacrifice myself if it was. If the situation was more like 'cut your own head off with a rusty saw or this guy dies,' I'd be much more inclined to save myself.

Well, I would like to think that I would take my own life...I mean it seems terribly rude to take somebody else's life without thier permission. And I suppose I would hope that if I were the innocent stranger, that the person choosing would also pick him or herself.

That's what I would like to think I would do. What I would actually do in that situation, I have no idea.

It'd probably depend more on the situation.

Would my death be instantaneous/painless? I'd be much more likely to sacrifice myself if it was. If the situation was more like 'cut your own head off with a rusty saw or this guy dies,' I'd be much more inclined to save myself.
just with a gun

I'd kill the other person without a moment of hesitation. There is no reason why I should value the life of one person over my own.

just with a gun

Ah. It's me then. A bullet to the head is pretty painless, cause it has a nasty habit of killing one instantly.

Without question, Id shoot the guy(or gal)

In which case it would mean your death.

Refusing to choose places the act on the individual that is imposing the choice, something they have already demonstrated they prefer not to do themselves, thus maximizing the odds of both individuals survival.
One also has to take into consideration that the individual imposing the choice cannot very well allow a single survivor to remain alive and testify. Why do his dirty work for him and risk being mistaken for a perp afterward, bringing shame to my family and friends?
Also, I choose to live my life on my own terms. If I am dumb enough to allow myself to be placed in such a situation, and additonally live according to the terms set forth by another, then it's not really much of a life worth saving anyway. There are things worse than death.

What if I was? ;)
i guess id wonder where you would find a 48 year old whoever who is more innocent than i am. i dont have to kill a nun do i?

If I was stuck in a situation like that, then I would try to find a way for both myself and the other to live. If the situation demands that a sacrifice is made, then I will take down the person making the threat.

Refusing to choose places the act on the individual that is imposing the choice, something they have already demonstrated they prefer not to do themselves, thus maximizing the odds of both individuals survival.
One also has to take into considerationt that the individual imposing the choice cannot very well allow a single survivor to remain alive and testify. Why do his dirty work for him and risk being mistaken for a perp afterward, bringing shame to my family and friends?
Also, I choose to live my life on my own terms. If I am dumb enough to allow myself to be placed in such a situation, and additonally live according to the terms set forth by another, then it's not really much of a life worth saving anyway. There are things worse than death.
Calm down. It's a hypothetical situation.

i guess id wonder where you would find a 48 year old whoever who is more innocent than i am. i dont have to kill a nun do i?
haha suuuuuuuree :p

I would take the gun and attempt to kill my captors, whether it means the death of myself and the innocent stranger. I would kill neither the other person nor me, but I would sacrifice our lives to attempt escape.

If I was stuck in a situation like that, then I would try to find a way for both myself and the other to live. If the situation demands that a sacrifice is made, then I will take down the person making the threat.

Way to avoid the question. What if an evil, bulletproof oopma loompa was making you choose? Those things are ferocious and unbeatable.

Calm down. It's a hypothetical situation.
:D Oh I am very calm. Quite content, and very sure of the correct answer. (By my own way of thinking)

I would take the gun and attempt to kill my captors, whether it means the death of myself and the innocent stranger. I would kill neither them nor me, but I would sacrifice our lives to attempt escape.

In case you didn't understand the question, there are two choices -- kill yourself, or kill the other person. How much simper can it get!?

Way to avoid the question. What if an evil, bulletproof oopma loompa was making you choose? Those things are ferocious and unbeatable.
or Chuck Norris?

or Chuck Norris?

Anything but that! I'd instantaneously die if I looked at Chuck Norris in person!

In case you didn't understand the question, there are two choices -- kill yourself, or kill the other person. How much simper can it get!?

It is impossible to get in such a situation without a third person or force causing it (unless the other innocent person isn't so innocent). Therefore, I would divert all my power to combat the third force.

It might all be a trick, you never know. Maybe if I kill the other innocent person, they decide that we both would have lived if I'd let him/her kill me, now we both die. Or maybe refusing to choose would cause us both to live. Or we would both die in any way. Because of the uncertainty, I'd face the problem at its root, the third person.

Option 4. I'd kill myself, and then the innocent.

There's no reason I'd value someone else's life over my own. So, the other person is dead.

Way to avoid the question. What if an evil, bulletproof oopma loompa was making you choose? Those things are ferocious and unbeatable.

ROFLMFAO!!! :p

Way to avoid the question. What if an evil, bulletproof oopma loompa was making you choose? Those things are ferocious and unbeatable.
Hmm... well, if that was the case, then I would grab the innocent and run my ass off. oompa loompas scare me....

I'd like to think that I'd kill myself but obviously I don't know what I'd actually do without experiencing the situation.

I don't get it.

Do you know what hypothetical means? You either kill the other person and live, or kill yourself and the other person lives. Choose.

Same as above, like to think would kill myself but guessing survival instinct would kick in. On the otherhand would i beable to live with myself knowing i'd killed someone else to save my own skin. hmmm

I'd like to think that I'd kill myself but obviously I don't know what I'd actually do without experiencing the situation.

What leads you to believe that it would be better or the "right thing to do" to kill yourself rather than the other person?

Do you know what hypothetical means? You either kill the other person and live, or kill yourself and the other person lives. Choose.

I never said "I don't get it" :p

Ok, ok, so in this hypothetical situation which, ironically hypothetically could never happen, I would kill the other person so I could live... unless at the time I would still be affected by clinical depression, in which case I'd choose to die because I might kill myself later in life.

I get it. :)

Yup, that's pretty much my answer, too.

I don't think anyone who answers they'd kill themselves would actually do that if it really happened.

What leads you to believe that it would be better or the "right thing to do" to kill yourself rather than the other person?

Better dead than a murderer.

Better dead than a murderer.
We seem to have a different opinion then. My life is much too important for me.

I don't think anyone who answers they'd kill themselves would actually do that if it really happened.

I did acknowledge that in my response.

We seem to have a different opinion then. My life is much too important for me.

You have to look at the wider implications of the question. It can be summed up as:

If you take no action you will die.
The only way to continue living is to end an innocent life that would have continued otherwise.

Think of that in a real life context: suppose you needed a heart transplant but there were none available; would you be justified in hunting down and killing a stranger on the street to take their heart? Do you see what a dangerous precedent you're setting?

If this were to actually happen, I'd probably stall, trying to think things out in a panicky way, run out of time, and get killed.

You have to look at the wider implications of the question. It can be summed up as:

If you take no action you will die.
The only way to continue living is to end an innocent life that would have continued otherwise.

Think of that in a real life context: suppose you needed a heart transplant but there were none available; would you be justified in hunting down and killing a stranger on the street to take their heart? Do you see what a dangerous precedent you're setting?

If the situation you suggest was plausible; I would hunt down and kill someone for their heart. I don't want other people to do this; I am not acting as if my will is an universal law, but there is nothing I wouldn't do to preserve my existence provided that I can continue to exist in a form I deem worthwhile (thus not brain dead and on life support).

I would hunt down and kill someone for their heart.

Please tell me where you live so I can be sure to stay at least one continent away from you. :eek:

If the situation you suggest was plausible; I would hunt down and kill someone for their heart. I don't want other people to do this; I am not acting as if my will is an universal law, but there is nothing I wouldn't do to preserve my existence provided that I can continue to exist in a form I deem worthwhile (thus not brain dead and on life support).

Innocent blood is too high a price to pay, even for my own life.

Innocent blood is too high a price to pay, even for my own life.

here here, totally agree, i dont think i matter any more than the next person and if i was a murder then in my own eyes i'd matter less, therefore i matter less than the innocent, therefore i should kill myself rather than them.

Innocent blood is too high a price to pay, even for my own life.

What if you are more innocent than the other person?

What if you are more innocent than the other person?

I'd hardly be innocent if I was a murderer would I? ;)

It really depends on the "innocent" person. They could be truly terrible and not've actually done anything "wrong"... Get my drift?

Refusing to choose places the act on the individual that is imposing the choice, something they have already demonstrated they prefer not to do themselves, thus maximizing the odds of both individuals survival.
One also has to take into consideration that the individual imposing the choice cannot very well allow a single survivor to remain alive and testify. Why do his dirty work for him and risk being mistaken for a perp afterward, bringing shame to my family and friends?
Also, I choose to live my life on my own terms. If I am dumb enough to allow myself to be placed in such a situation, and additonally live according to the terms set forth by another, then it's not really much of a life worth saving anyway. There are things worse than death.
I second this, or assuming that I have the gun I supose to do the deed with and the dick in charge is present I shoot them either way if the person setting this up was present I would attack them before any of the other options.

If the situation you suggest was plausible; I would hunt down and kill someone for their heart. I don't want other people to do this; I am not acting as if my will is an universal law, but there is nothing I wouldn't do to preserve my existence provided that I can continue to exist in a form I deem worthwhile (thus not brain dead and on life support).
You relize that such action would most likely lead to an end of your existance when the authorities get a hold of you?

I'd hardly be innocent if I was a murderer would I? ;)

But you are not actually a murderer until you have already made the valuation and the other person is already dead.

So murder shouldn't weigh in to your decision.

Good grief - before this thread I thought I'd seen the worst NS Gen could get, but seriously guys, this is assinine behaviour taken to the next level. It's a hypothetical! Meaning that by some crazy turn of events you have been lead to the situation in which you only have these two choices! Maybe you're tied down and unable to pull of some fantastically unlikely escape, who knows? Just answer the question!

[/semi-rant]

Anyway, now I've got that off my chest :p My own answer:

Myself. Since we are talking an innocent by which, this being a hypothetical, we assume to mean someone who has done nothing wrong, and since I know I sure as hell have, then from a strictly moralistic POV I'd deserve it more anyway.

Besides which, I've made my peace with God, so death holds no fear for me. Can the same be said of the other? I dunno, so I wouldn't take that chance. After all - eternal life seems like something of a boon to me compared to what we/I have at the moment.

So basically, yeah, I'd let myself die rather than this innocent.

Or at least, it's my sincere hope that I'd be able to do that if faced with this situation.

I value my own life more than an innocent persons. So nuts to them.


I see very little point in wasting myself. It won't benefit me in anyway at all. I'll be dead.

You relize that such action would most likely lead to an end of your existance when the authorities get a hold of you?

That's why I preceded the statement with "if what you were suggesting was plausible." Obviously I couldn't really do that; but the point was that I'd go to any length to preserve my life.

kill.

id tell myself the other person is responsible for my pets death...

Kill the stranger. They look innocent, but you know they've done something to deserve it!

here here, totally agree, i dont think i matter any more than the next person and if i was a murder then in my own eyes i'd matter less, therefore i matter less than the innocent, therefore i should kill myself rather than them.

Ahh but that creates a paradox. If you decide to kill yourself you are doing an amazingly selfless and good act, could they say they have done the same? Therefore you would matter more than joe ordinary and should've taken his life.

Ahh but that creates a paradox. If you decide to kill yourself you are doing an amazingly selfless and good act, could they say they have done the same? Therefore you would matter more than joe ordinary and should've taken his life.
but that would mean...*head explodes*

But you are not actually a murderer until you have already made the valuation and the other person is already dead.

So murder shouldn't weigh in to your decision.

But the aim is to save an innocent life.

I can't commit murder without becoming a murderer so innocent life can't be saved that way.

Unequivocally kill the other person, always

Is she hot?

I'd kill off the innocent person. If I hadn't done anything, and this other person hadn't done anything then why would I choose them over me.

so true:D :mp5:

Myself.