Would you rather...

Kill 5 innocent children yourself if it would end all bloodshed in the Middle East for 25 years

Have ongoing wars, terrorism and fighting in the Middle East

Save thousands and thousands of lives (children's lives included) by getting your hands very, very dirty.

Ending the Violence

Oct 7, 2009

VintageSacrifices

Community arguments

Kill 5 innocent children yourself if it would end all bloodshed in the Middle East for 25 years

Five lives weighed against twenty-five years of mass casualties — many of them children — is a utilitarian calculation that is difficult to dismiss
Choosing inaction doesn't preserve your innocence; those who could prevent mass death and refuse bear moral weight for what continues
In twenty-five years of ongoing conflict, far more than five children will die — the greater-good arithmetic overwhelmingly favors acting

Have ongoing wars, terrorism and fighting in the Middle East

A temporary ceasefire leaves underlying causes untouched — when the twenty-five years expire, the same tensions could resume worse than before
There is a fundamental moral distinction between killing someone with your own hands and failing to prevent distant violence committed by others
Accepting that murdering innocents is justified whenever the stakes seem high enough establishes a logic with no limiting principle

Last generated Jun 29, 2026.

Comments

Would you rather...

Kill 5 innocent children yourself if it would end all bloodshed in the Middle East for 25 years

Have ongoing wars, terrorism and fighting in the Middle East

Never see the sky again

Never see a body of water again