Time For Another Moral Dilemma!

[Zephyr]

You are going on a cruise. 2 days into the cruise your ship experiences technical difficulties and the captain says it needs to make an unscheduled stop. A couple of hours later the captain makes another announcement that the ships hull has been breached and that you will all need to start heading to life rafts and abandon ship. The ships life rafts are lowered as people begin to pile in and you get on board one of the life rafts.

As it is lowered however, it hits the side of the ship, putting a hole in the side of the raft, and when it hits the water it begins to sink. There are 10 people in the boat and to prevent it sinking, you quickly work out that by having 9 people working for 10 minutes while 1 person rests you can bail the water out with their hands, quick enough to keep the water at bay and preventing it from sinking, but you have to continually keep it up to ensure that the boat doesn’t sink. By being able to rest one person you are greatly able to increase the length of time you can keep the boat afloat, however if the rescue team doesn’t turn up you calculate that within 5 hours the boat will sink and you will all die.

While taking your break, you glance over to another boat and notice that a friend of yours who you met on the boat is there and has noticed your predicament. He is signaling for you to come over and join them on their boat so you don’t have to continue bailing water out. There is only just enough room for one more person. You also notice that their boat is moving away rapidly with the current, but your boat can’t keep up because the hole is affecting its buoyancy.

You estimate that if you jump ship, you will force all 9 remaining crew members to bail water continuously, which will reduce the total time they can stay afloat to just 2 hours, but will ensure that you will be able to live long enough to be rescued.

If you stay aboard, you will not have another chance to jump ship, and there’s no guarantee that the rescue will arrive in 5 hours, meaning you will drown, however by staying you give everyone a better chance of survival.
As you watch the boat with your friend drift away, you realize you have about 30 seconds to make a decision:

a) Do you stay on your current boat and help keep it afloat as long as possible and hope that the rescue will arrive in 5 hours
b) Do you go to your friends boat, ensuring your rescue, but reducing the chances of the others on the boat being rescued?

[Θάνατος]

a) Do you stay on your current boat and help keep it afloat as long as possible and hope that the rescue will arrive in 5 hours

I choose this option.

I would rather stay and help the people who are in need of help then bail on the people who need for a person I just met on the cruise.

I guess I would rather die trying to help others live then live being a coward. My life is unimportant to me but trying to do my best to save others is what is more important here. I would gladly trade my life so others could live.

Very good thread here Steph. :P

[Church]

A.

If I chose B. I would let myself, and others down, which I won't do to ensure my survival and put 9 at risk

[Requin]

a) Do you stay on your current boat and help keep it afloat as long as possible and hope that the rescue will arrive in 5 hours

I'd choose to do that...if I did the later I would never be able to live it down. My life is important to me, but I would rather stay and help the others to safety.

[INFERNO]

B.

If the other 9 die, I have no problem with it.

[The Batman]

I would have to be selfish on this one. I would save myself and then try and get help for the others.

[Sage]

A is the more honorable action, but to be perfectly honest and realistic, I would go with B. A value my life more than that of strangers, and it isn't garuanteed that they would all die anyway, there is merely a chance of it.

Sure, it may be selfish, but you have a long life ahead of you afterwards to make up for it.

[Camazotz]

a) Do you stay on your current boat and help keep it afloat as long as possible and hope that the rescue will arrive in 5 hours
b) Do you go to your friends boat, ensuring your rescue, but reducing the chances of the others on the boat being rescued?

It depends who is on my ship. If there are any children or women on board, I tell them to go with my friend. Otherwise, I yell to my friend to get help while I stay here and help the people on my ship.

So option A. In my opinion, A is also a selfish option. The guilt I would have if I ran away would eat me alive.

I completely understand if someone were to pick B.

[Whisper]

C.
Ducktape...never go on a cruise without it

[Bobby]

I think a lot of people are tempted to say A. But in the heat of the moment, almost everyone would do B.

[Church]

Not me, I know morals and you don't do some selfish crap and let others down, even in the heat of the moment I wouldn't let those people down

[Perseus]

A.
If I was to do B., my conscience would eat me away and I would forever feel horrible..

[Θάνατος]

I think a lot of people are tempted to say A. But in the heat of the moment, almost everyone would do B.

I don't agree with you. Some people are selfish and do care more about others than themselves.

I don't think you should make a generalized statement about how other would react I know for a fact I would rather die trying to save other than being selfish trying to save my own ass. I could not live with myself.