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A collection of people is not a column in a spreadsheet or inventory. The most valuable thing in the world is a human life regardless of callous examples of how
by brazzledazzle 11y ago
A collection of people is not a column in a spreadsheet or inventory. The most valuable thing in the world is a human life regardless of callous examples of how cheaply they can be had or taken. Just because you can measure two different systems using a blind metric like "most living people at the end" doesn't make it ethical. Ethics apply to individuals as much, if not more so, as groups.
- philh 11y agoThat doesn't help us choose what to do. A collection of people is important, and another collection of people is important, and one of these collections of people is going to die and we have to choose which one. Platitudes about the domain of ethics don't help us to choose.
- brazzledazzle 11y agoThat isn't the situation at all. One group of people was going to die regardless. Or was going to suffer a life-long disease. The debate is whether or not killing people that weren't going to die is worth it if your body count is lower at the end. We're not debating whether or not flipping the switch on a train track is ethical.
- venomsnake 11y ago> The most valuable thing in the world is a human life regardless of callous examples of how cheaply they can be had or taken. Until I hear that from a sentient creature that is not human, I won't accept it as an universal truth.
- evincarofautumn 11y agoWe are not worth anything except to each other—value is dative, if you will. The importance of human life is no less true just because it’s subjective to humans.
- brazzledazzle 11y agoThat's comforting.