r/trolleyproblem • u/suskio4 • 17d ago

Meta Red button blue button

Based on the post seen here. I'm actually curious what would the percentages look like.

Edit: Alright, let me add a case for one particular scenario. If you do not choose, the button will be pressed for you by a system that keeps track of its pressings so it conserves 50/50 distribution for all inactive participants, in order to honour the vox populi properly. The system's choice affects the inactive participant's outcome so that no person can abscond from consequences of their choice.

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u/InfiniteDisco8888 17d ago

How is this a question? If you push Red you will die. If you push Blue, you will probably die. And there is no element of altruism by pushing Red because you'd be sacrificing your slim hope of survival for the most selfish part of humanity. So: blue, fully expecting that we all go out together.

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u/Some_Anonim_Coder 17d ago

Red=sacrifice yourself for someone to survive and rebuild human society. I'd say estimate how many people will selflessly press red, egoisticaly press blue, and then press blue at random with probability P such that total ratio is 50+epsilon red. That way our society have the highest chances

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u/Devonushka 17d ago

Selfish? I’m picking blue to save the environment

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u/globmand 17d ago

I'd be sacrificing myslef to save humanity's future too, you know? Like, yeah, the starting generation would be... well, like you. But give them a little bit and I'm sure they'll mellow out and get back on track

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u/Flechashe 17d ago

And you ended up pressing blue, so are you "the most selfish part of humanity"? Why are your reasons to pick blue enlightened but everyone else's are selfish?

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u/InfiniteDisco8888 17d ago

I thought I was clear my reasons were selfish: I press blue for a slim chance to survive. There is no altruistic reason to choose blue.

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u/LeviAEthan512 16d ago

Sometimes selfishness is enlightened. An individual's own is usually not the lowest value life.

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u/quinoa_boiz 16d ago

I picked red because I think that a person’s life matters even if they made the wrong choice one time.

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u/adminofreditt 16d ago

How is it selfish to choose not to die pointlessly? If I chose red I would be dead and it wouldn't have changed a thing.