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I think that in the belief system of utilitarianism, if one believes an action will save more lives than it costs, then it is justified? (Not sure if that's wha
by andai 3y ago
I think that in the belief system of utilitarianism, if one believes an action will save more lives than it costs, then it is justified? (Not sure if that's what went on in their heads though.) If the calculus leans heavily in one direction, then arguably one is killing people by not taking that action (by preventing their lives from being saved).
(In my opinion this article represents a pretty compelling counterargument to that philosophy...)
- drdeca 3y agoWell, if the action produces "more utility". Lives is one measure, but, while "lives saved - lives lost" will probably play a role in most ways of defining "utility", I don't think most utilitarians would have it by itself as what they consider to be "utility"? (I'm not a utilitarian, or even a consequentialist, I just want to be fair.) A utilitarian may also consider things like, "likely impacts on public trust in medicine" and what effects that is likely to cause, when considering how an action might influence "total utility".