We’re going to do a thought experiment called The Footbridge Problem. Here’s how it works:
A runaway trolley is heading toward five people on the tracks. You are standing on a footbridge above the tracks. Next to you is a large stranger. The only way to stop the trolley is to push this person off the bridge — their body would stop the trolley and save the five.
Do nothing: Five people die. Push the stranger: One person dies, but five are saved.
Stand up if you would push the stranger.
Stay seated if you would do nothing.
Many people who would pull a lever won’t push someone. Why does using your hands feel different from pulling a lever — even though the outcome is the same?
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