Self-Defense Surviving

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WanderingGaze22
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Joined: June 9th, 2021, 12:39 am

Self-Defense Surviving

Post by WanderingGaze22 »

In this thought experiment, there are two sailors, aptly named A and B. They both see a plank that can only support one person and they both swim towards it. Sailor A gets to the plank first. Sailor B, who is going to drown eventually, pushes A off and away from the plank and soon enough, A drowns. Sailor B remains on the plank and is later saved by a rescue party. The question is whether Sailor B can be tried for murder because if B had to kill A in order to live, then it would arguably be in self-defense. Could there have been any compromise or alternative?
stevie
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Re: Self-Defense Surviving

Post by stevie »

WanderingGaze22 wrote: November 16th, 2021, 3:20 am ...The question is whether Sailor B can be tried for murder because if B had to kill A in order to live, then it would arguably be in self-defense. Could there have been any compromise or alternative?
Usually "murder" is defined in the particular criminal code to be applied.
mankind ... must act and reason and believe; though they are not able, by their most diligent enquiry, to satisfy themselves concerning the foundation of these operations, or to remove the objections, which may be raised against them [Hume]
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LuckyR
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Re: Self-Defense Surviving

Post by LuckyR »

WanderingGaze22 wrote: November 16th, 2021, 3:20 am In this thought experiment, there are two sailors, aptly named A and B. They both see a plank that can only support one person and they both swim towards it. Sailor A gets to the plank first. Sailor B, who is going to drown eventually, pushes A off and away from the plank and soon enough, A drowns. Sailor B remains on the plank and is later saved by a rescue party. The question is whether Sailor B can be tried for murder because if B had to kill A in order to live, then it would arguably be in self-defense. Could there have been any compromise or alternative?
This question can be answered several ways. Legally, B is guilty of murder by the letter of the law, though does not violate the spirit of the law and thus likely would not be put on trial.

Ethically and logically I would say that neither A nor B acted wrongly (unethically) because in this scenario one sailor was going to die regardless, and both might have died, thus the final outcome could not have been improved by a different action than what B actually did.
"As usual... it depends."
Steve3007
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Re: Self-Defense Surviving

Post by Steve3007 »

Are they in international waters?
Ecurb
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Re: Self-Defense Surviving

Post by Ecurb »

We all know what Leonardo DiCaprio's solution would be!
EricPH
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Re: Self-Defense Surviving

Post by EricPH »

Sailor B will probably suffer from survivors guilt for the rest of his life. He knows what he did.

I have heard soldiers talk about survivors guilt when they have been in a battle together, and their mates have been killed.

I doubt if sailor B could be charged with murder even if they found the body, after all he only pushed sailor A. And that would not have been a fatal blow.

I guess the only compromise they could have come to; was to take it in turns to share the plank.
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