Morality

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Hypothetical scenario

Jim is 50. Jim has a disease. Jim's doctors are confident the disease can be controlled and he can live but he will never be able to work again. Without treatment, Jim will die within 6 months.

Jim works as the overnight cashier at a 24 hour convenience store. He has no medical insurance. He has a high school education with no other marketable skills. He works a lot of overtime and his annual wages exceed, by a very small amount, the income limits of Medicaid eligibility.

Jim's doctors visits and tests, thus far, have been paid for by his wealthy ex-wife. She has indicated she will be unable to foot the bill for the treatment that can save his life.

Which of the following is less immoral?

A. Jim's treatment is funded by a tax surcharge on certain individuals. These individuals do not know Jim. They do not shop at the convenience store he works in. Some of these individuals will have to scale back college plans for one or more of their children as a result of this surcharge. Jim's survival has no tangible positive effect on their lives.

B. The wealthy ex-wife's assets are seized by the Government and used to fund Jim's treatment. 6 months later, Jim is alive and broke; so is his ex-wife. No one but Jim's ex-wife is harmed.

C. Jim is not treated. He dies a few days shy of his doctor's 6-month projection. Neither Jim's ex-wife nor any other taxpayer is harmed.

Edited July 22, 2009 by w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r

[Peikko 1,575]

It will entirely depend on what value system one adheres to. For some, there is this odd idea that the value of a human life can't be measured in economic terms - for others it can only be measured in economic terms. Ho hum.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

It will entirely depend on what value system one adheres to.

Tell us what you think. Let others worry about their value systems. Answer in accordance with yours.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

He should die. He is poor and didn't go to school. His fault.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

He should die. He is poor and didn't go to school. His fault.

You don't have the value system I thought you would.

[My Name Is Nobody 3]

D. Jim should quit feeling sorry for himself and use that energy to find a solution to his problem.

[Ban Hammer 13,345]

life is a ####### shoot. he rolled snake eyes.

[Jenn! 918]

Was the ex-wife paying for his treatments out of the goodness of her heart or because he was using alimony payments to fund his treatment?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Was the ex-wife paying for his treatments out of the goodness of her heart or because he was using alimony payments to fund his treatment?

Goodness.

[Peikko 1,575]

In my value system, I would pick a). A life is saved at little cost to all contributors. This life could be a child/adult/prisoner. It's all the same to me.

[DeadPoolX 9]

The "least immoral" choice is obviously the first one, Choice A. However, the most logical choice is the last one, Choice C. Choice B makes no sense at all and only serves to hurt them both in the long run.

[Ms. Squirrel 11]

A

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

life is a ####### shoot. he rolled snake eyes.

What does that mean?

[pedroh 21]

A

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

The idea behind socialized medicine is that everyone takes care of everyone else - and so everyone benefits from the availability of healthcare, whether you earn $100K a year, $30K or are unemployed.

So while Jim's survival doesn't directly impact anyone else, the benefit he receives is one that's also conferred on other people participating in the system.

Generally speaking, you wouldn't walk by the scene of an accident without trying to render some help. Same idea more or less.