Would you sacrifice yourself to save other people?

by Lore 34 Replies latest jw friends

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  panhandlegirl

  Talesin, you are correct and I really enjoy reading your posts.
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  Lore

  Hi Lore, what is your point for asking these questions?

  I didn't have a point exactly. It's just an interesting question.

  A lot of people would say they'd throw themselves on the grenade to save a few other lives. But very very rarely will anyone say they'd be willing to be killed now to save dozens through the organ transpant.

  I'm curious about why that is.

  Why is sacrificing yourself in a violent emergency heroic and admirable, but sacrificing yourself to provide essential parts is creepy and objectionable?

  Why is that? What's the difference? Either way you're deliberately sacrificing yourself to save others.

  Imagine you were the one of the guys waiting on an organ transplant. You'd probably feel VERY guilty about accepting the organ if you knew that he killed himself to give it to you.

  But if someone threw themselves on a grenade to save you. Would you feel the same guilt? Or would you just admire the guy and thank his family?

  There's something different about it, and I want to know what it is.
• 

  tec

  I think both people would feel guilty. The first more so than the second though; just because someone made a conscious decision, and the latter is more of an instinctual one. Plus in the case of the guy on the grenade, he might have died anyway... but instead saved people. In the case of the organ transplant, he still had a long life to live and would not have died anyway. So he gave up his life that was in no danger to begin with.

  There may be more, but I think that's a start. Perhaps others can chime in.

  Peace,

  tammy
• 

  JWOP

  Dontcha usually have about ten seconds before a grenade explodes? If that's right, then I'd opt for throwing it back out where it came from.
• 

  Knowsnothing

  Why is sacrificing yourself in a violent emergency heroic and admirable, but sacrificing yourself to provide essential parts is creepy and objectionable?

  You've not much of a choice. Or, it would make you look bad.

  Why is that? What's the difference? Either way you're deliberately sacrificing yourself to save others.

  It's all psychological, obviously. The end result is the same, you end up dying, and others end up living thanks to your sacrifice. It seems to me that there is a social taboo about such voluntary sacrifice occuring, in the case of the organ transplant. It really just does seem unnatural. I would be willing to help those people medically until the very last moment, but why exactly would I give my life for them?

  In the grenade situation, it seems like since you are thrust into the situation, you've almost no choice. Sure, you could leave them there to perish, but I think that since we like to feel in power and being able to protect, we feel we are doing something heroic.

  Maybe, it's the way we've been brought up. Like you said, it seems more heroic to save someone from a violent episode than from a medical emergency, because we see that in t.v. much.

  Another thing is that the 1st option is reactionary. The 2nd involves meditating. When you are given time to reflect upon exactly what you are doing, you get cold feet.

  Here are my respones.

  1.) I would run, or throw the grenade back as ABibleStudent mentioned, depends where the grenade landed. There are other options than what you presented, y'know.

  2.) This is a tough one. That's 10 people we are talking about... but I'm selfish. I believe there are always other options. Imagine if I were a skilled doctor that had saved hundreds of lives in the course of my career, but in sacrificing myself potentially stopped helping other for what would've been the remainder of my career. If you're talking about numbers, my continuing to live would trump any temporal gains from transplants, for a larger number of people.
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  talesin

  Talesin, you are correct and I really enjoy reading your posts.

  Thank you, panhandlegirl,, that means a lot to me.
• 

  talesin

  Another thought to throw into the mix. I have always loved Mr. Spock, and it has been my nickname over the years .... the human/Vulcan thing is quite applicable to me. So, if you recall the Spock death scene, which was one of my favorites - a lot of good lines, there,,, one was this:
  
  "the good of the many outweighs the good of the few, or the one"

  t
• 

  tootired2care

  I gladly would die a heros death, because it beats being old, and dying a slow death in a hospital with a kbag.
• 

  talesin

  tt2c
• 

  Broken Promises

  No for both occasions, although with the grenade one I might try to drag at least one other person out with me.

  As for the organ donation, I don't see the point of giving up my life for others. And I'm a nce person too.