Melanie E. Woldt
June 28, 2007
Composition II
Week 6 Blog Entry
To Live or Die, That is the Question
Benjamin Cardozo was correct when he wrote “When two or more are overtaken by a common disaster, there is no right on the part of one to save the lives of some by killing another. There is no rule of human jettison.” I believe that every life is precious and should try to be saved. I believe that killing off a few people in order to save your own life and others in the boat is similar to playing God. We are not qualified for that. To choose who to kill off and who to save is not the answer to saving as many as possible. If the situation called for someone else to die in order to save more lives, then why didn’t the person whose brilliant idea it was die instead of killing off others?
I believe that there could have been a way to save more people. Perhaps the crew could have rethought of a better plan before the ship went down. Who is to say? But no matter the circumstance, killing off others in order for you to live is not moral. It is ethically irresponsible. It violates so many ethical social rules.
I would hate to live the rest of my life out knowing that I was living on a potentially stolen life. Who is to say that that was when you were meant to die? Killing another person in order to for you to survive is stealing that other person’s life line. It is wrong. Other than living through the stolen life, it would be a cursed life you would live. Everyday, you would feel guilty knowing that you could have done something helpful instead of adding fuel to the fire, so to speak. That guilt would gnaw at you every waking moment. It would torment you in nightmares each night. Knowing that you deliberately left someone to die is bad enough, but knowing you helped end that person’s life, would kill you. Why go through a stolen, tortured life? If someone ‘needs to die in order to let someone else live,’ then why not die yourself? Granted, giving up isn’t the best plan either, but at least then you would be remembered as someone who tried to make a difference. Not to mention the fact that killing is illegal. Why would it suddenly be legal in extreme circumstances? It is still a broken law.
June 28, 2007
Composition II
Week 6 Blog Entry
To Live or Die, That is the Question
Benjamin Cardozo was correct when he wrote “When two or more are overtaken by a common disaster, there is no right on the part of one to save the lives of some by killing another. There is no rule of human jettison.” I believe that every life is precious and should try to be saved. I believe that killing off a few people in order to save your own life and others in the boat is similar to playing God. We are not qualified for that. To choose who to kill off and who to save is not the answer to saving as many as possible. If the situation called for someone else to die in order to save more lives, then why didn’t the person whose brilliant idea it was die instead of killing off others?
I believe that there could have been a way to save more people. Perhaps the crew could have rethought of a better plan before the ship went down. Who is to say? But no matter the circumstance, killing off others in order for you to live is not moral. It is ethically irresponsible. It violates so many ethical social rules.
I would hate to live the rest of my life out knowing that I was living on a potentially stolen life. Who is to say that that was when you were meant to die? Killing another person in order to for you to survive is stealing that other person’s life line. It is wrong. Other than living through the stolen life, it would be a cursed life you would live. Everyday, you would feel guilty knowing that you could have done something helpful instead of adding fuel to the fire, so to speak. That guilt would gnaw at you every waking moment. It would torment you in nightmares each night. Knowing that you deliberately left someone to die is bad enough, but knowing you helped end that person’s life, would kill you. Why go through a stolen, tortured life? If someone ‘needs to die in order to let someone else live,’ then why not die yourself? Granted, giving up isn’t the best plan either, but at least then you would be remembered as someone who tried to make a difference. Not to mention the fact that killing is illegal. Why would it suddenly be legal in extreme circumstances? It is still a broken law.
Having never been in such extreme a circumstance, I do not know if I would be trying to save only my life or trying to save the lives of others. I do not know if I would be terrified out of my mind, I do not know if I would be able to do anything other than try to save my own life. But I can hope that I can reach out and help someone else instead of letting them hurt for me. I can hope that if I ever do get into such a situation, that I can live up to my personal morals.
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