Hi!
The Trolley Problem refers to the ethical dilemma where you have the choice to pull a lever, which saves five people tied down to a track from being hit by a trolley, but the lever diverts the trolley to another track with only one person tied down to it.
If we look at the original problem from a logical standpoint, it makes sense to pull the lever, diverting the track to save five people as opposed to one person. Numerically, five is more than one, right? However, the problem is likely more nuanced than at face value. What kind of people are tied on the tracks? Does age play a factor? What if the five people tied down are death row inmates?
But most importantly, is it even ethical or possible to determine the value of one’s life?
Some argue that the scenario itself is unrealistic, a hypothetical fallacy that only proposes two possible options – to pull or not to pull. The gruesome situation does not consider the possibility of other solutions. We could try to warn the train conductor or untie the one person off the tracks and then pull the lever.
While there isn’t really an objective, true answer to the Trolley Problem, my take on the dilemma would be to not pull the lever because then it would do the cool loop-da-loop. Anyway, if you’re interested in obscure Trolley Problem scenarios, here’s a fun website to test your morality: https://neal.fun/absurd-trolley-problems/
With regrets,
Dear Letterbox