[Poll] Could you abandon a dying person?

I’m sleepy today.

You were hit by Truck-kun and you ended up meeting the Celestial of Fruit and Vegetables to discuss your next isekai life.

Weirdly, the Celestial was actually willing to grant you an OP cheat today.

Isn’t that strange?

Normally, the Celestial never gives out OP cheats, so your luck must be amazing! The details of the cheat are as follows:

< Absolute Dominion >

You have absolute total control of everything within a one meter radius of your body.

Within this boundary, you can alter reality in any way that you want — and at absolutely zero cost.

It takes absolutely zero effort for you. As long as you wish for it, it will happen.

However, you are only capable of manipulating things inside of the boundary. You are unable to manipulate or control anything outside of the one meter radius.

Note: There are a number of additional limitations that are left out here for conciseness. Ask @lychee for details.​

It’s a ridiculous cheat, right? I’m sure you must be excited! You’ll never have to worry about food or money or any materialistic desire again, because you can simply summon it out of thin air! You’re also nearly invincible!

+ + +​

You wake up in a new setting, and you’re feeling good about life.

However, then you witness a poor person being run over by a horse carriage. It is a very gruesome and ugly incident, and they have a terrible wound. They appear to be bleeding out onto the ground, and they’re dying on the streets with no one moving to help them.

Feeling somewhat heroic, you decide to go over and heal the injured person — after all it takes zero effort for you to save their life. All you have to do is walk within one meter of them, and your cheat ability will effortlessly fix them.

Someone witnesses your amazing power, and they excitedly jump up and down and say they want to show you something.

Specifically, they bring you to the slums of the city and they show you a horrific scene of endless people dying on the streets.

They explain that this planet has a population of nine quintillion people and half the world’s population lives here (this is the largest city in the world). More then 80% of the world is impoverished and cannot afford basic necessities. Furthermore, there is a deadly plague raging through the slums, and there are lots of people on the brink of life and death.

Your companion introduces themself as a magic doctor, and they insist that people who have the strength to effortlessly save other people's lives are morally obligated to save the life of any critically ill people encounter. Otherwise, it is the same as murder.

You are confused by this statement and you ask them to explain.

The doctor gives an analogy: imagine yourself standing beside some train tracks. An out-of-control train is hurtling towards an innocent child playing on the train tracks. If you push a lever, it will redirect the train onto a different track to save the child’s life. If you do nothing, the train will collide with the child and send blood splatters everywhere.

How is it possible to justify not pushing the lever? In fact, the doctor argues that refusing push the lever is the same as murder.

The doctor stares at you expectantly as they gesture towards the slums in front of you. They want you to join them on their quest to help as many people as possible.

You can immediately tell that you could spend every waking moment of your entire life here, Even if you spent all day walking from patient to patient to cure them from their respective illness, and you still wouldn’t be able to help everyone. There’s just simply not enough hours in a day, and there’s simply too many people.

The doctor has a somber look of despair, but they give you a look of determination. The doctor tells you they don’t have amazing powers like yours, and actually it takes them a full hour to magically cure a patient of the plague. The doctor is already very wealthy (they don’t have any lack of money), and they explain they can’t justify enjoying life in luxury or having fun when so many people are literally suffering right next door. Every patient is a person, and they all have their own families and lives and dreams and aspirations — they just happened to catch a horrible illness from pure bad luck — and nobody else around will bother saving them except you.

The doctor has a reputation for being the only person that will treat sick people in the slums. Humans line up to see the doctor’s clinic for months, and they pitch tents while in line because the wait is so long. Lots of people die from their disease while waiting in line, but they legitimately have no other hope.

The doctor seems to believe that you’ll join them on this endless mission to save lives.

...However, this isn’t exactly how you imagined what your isekai life would be like. You have an insane OP cheat, but you kind of just want to be lazy and have fun a little, right?

It would really suck to be in a hospital all day and overworked. You just want to have fun.

However, every second that passes, somebody is literally dying in front of you...?

What would you do?​

1. Do you agree with the doctor? Is refusing to save someone when you could easily do so the same as killing them?

2. Does great power come with great responsibility?

3. Would you still want a crazy OP cheat power despite being presented with this scenario?

4. If you had the ability to heal anyone that you touch, would you spend all day in the hospital? Would you overwork yourself? Would you feel guilty about saying no to all the life-or-death patients trying to schedule an appointment because you’re thinking about going on vacation?

 

Why isn't there an option of saving them if they're only beautiful...
Heck my vote will also belong if they are lolis.

Edit: On a serious note... I am a deep believer of "Bystander Syndrome". I don't want to be some kind of protagonist who won't think of the consequences of his/her actions. What if that dude is a vessel for an unstoppable Chuthulu deity who can devour you like a peanut nutsack in the morning?

 

I am confused by this scenario since who would immediately show off their power in public in a world they know nothing about? That's like begging to be kidnapped and experimented upon. Yeah, you could escape most situations with "your powers" but it would be easier to just avoid these kind of situations. Furthermore, the power doesn't make you invincible, you could be controlled with drugs, magic, etc. and your power wouldn't be able to save you. You'll spend the rest of your life as some noble's wish machine.

 

1. No - Because this is pointless
2. No - Because this is a hassle
3. No - Because the other doctor is annoying
4. No - Because this world is clearly overpopulated

I'd also like to second @ongoingwhy 's point that showing it off in general would be extremely stupid and borderline suicidal.

edit on empathy: Intelligent empathy is good, because the limits and benefits are known. blind unconditional empathy is what causes all sorts of titanic problems and shitstorms.

 

If you're not a family member or friend then your life has pretty much no meaning to me, empathy is a species destroying trait.

 

How am I obligated to live my life for the sake of others? I do what I want to do, because I want to do it. When people think of Saints, were they obligated to help people? No, they did it of their own will, making them Saints. When people think of evil, are those considered evil (legitimately evil, enjoying the suffering of others for no other purpose) doing it as an obligation? No, we call those people heartless bastards. The truly evil ones inflict suffering for their own enjoyment. By choosing to live your life and use your powers for your own enjoyment, not considering you use it to make others suffer (think torture or r*pe), you would just be a person that wants to live life the way you want, which doesn't include helping everyone you see.

Tl;Dr: There is no obligation, I am free to use my power in which ever way I choose. I don't have to help others, I can choose to do so. And very much choose the opposite.

 

nope they can all go die for all i care just cuz i can do somyhing foesnt mean i will. not gonna donate a million dollar jusy cuz i can. same logic. theres nothing in it for me.

 

Why is the celestial of Fruit and Vegetables the one giving powers? I don't see the relation here
What is the catch ?

 

No...what I mean is- you need to enjoy your life too. You can't spend all your time doing stuff for other people, especially if others are guilting you into it. There might be a time when you snap- and then you won't be such a good person anymore. Moderation and freedom is key. You also need to pay attention to your mental health. Helping people is all well and good, but not to the detriment of yourself.

I'd probably be a healer, but I wouldn't want to stay in one place- but to travel around. I will help those people I get to know personally and like.l, random people too even... But I wouldn't waste my life doing something pointless. Because you can't cure everyone in the end, and even after you're gone things will go on like they had before.

1. Do you agree with the doctor? Is refusing to save someone when you could easily do so the same as killing them?
It depends, is it one person? Ten? Twenty? Everyone? I will not spend my whole life working as a slave to save other people. It's just not healthy for me, and I'd get desensitized very quick. I would choose to become a healer yes, but there's a limit to how many lives I can fix- and the world shouldn't become dependent on me anyway.

2. Does great power come with great responsibility?
Yes. You have to decide how to use that power. I will use it for others, but I will also use it for myself. Better than snapping and turning toward evil to get a quiet minute.

3. Would you still want a crazy OP cheat power despite being presented with this scenario?
Yes..

4. If you had the ability to heal anyone that you touch, would you spend all day in the hospital? Would you overwork yourself? Would you feel guilty about saying no to all the life-or-death patients trying to schedule an appointment because you’re thinking about going on vacation?
No, I'd visit hospital's randomly to take care of their life/death patients. I'd heal randomly too- in the moment. That's if someone doesn't capture me and make me their slave...or capture my family because then I'd be a willing slave. They better at least let them live in luxary...

No I wouldn't overwork myself. Yes I would feel guilty, but I'd try not to think about it.

 

I am not obligated to save people. I'll save those who matter to me, but I just arrived in said world. So I don't want to save anyone for now...

Also, population density is clearly a problem here. Why not let the plague thin out the herd?...

 

1.Yes. Yes, though its not necessarily easy in this case.
2. No, but it does come with a little responsibility to maintain moral decency.
3. Yes.
4. Maybe. Maybe. Probably.
More importantly can I create a cure so they can reverse engineer it or so I can create pile wherever I walk?

 

1. Do you agree with the doctor? Is refusing to save someone when you could easily do so the same as killing them?
-No, and no. I believe in the ideology that humans are inherently evil. There are no "clean slate when they're a baby" sort of thing that exists, or so I believe. Putting that aside, what I mean to say is that within those millions of people that you heal are also the evil people that would do harm to others, including yourself, when you heal them. Greed exists even to the purest of people, I'd rather be the greedy person myself and make it so that there would be no trouble that would sprout from you interfering with others.
2. Does great power come with great responsibility?
-Yes, but it doesn't have to be your responsibility. I believe more in the quote "Your own life is your responsibility."
3. Would you still want a crazy OP cheat power despite being presented with this scenario?
-Yes. Who wouldn't? But having to be entangled with others like that, I would have to refuse. Call me greedy, call me selfish. But no, I don't have the responsibility to help, and I won't.
4. If you had the ability to heal anyone that you touch, would you spend all day in the hospital? Would you overwork yourself? Would you feel guilty about saying no to all the life-or-death patients trying to schedule an appointment because you’re thinking about going on vacation?
-I would spend my time if it's in my responsibility to heal others. But just as others want me to heal them, I also want to make sure that I'm in a tip-top shape, myself. I won't feel guilty, no. I will make sure that my body would be fit, even if it's just to heal a few more people.

 

While i agree showing off is stupid, his power does make him completely invincible, after all he can in that one meter do anything.(stop magic and negate drugs) And this is honestly nitpicking as the OP wanted to show a question of what will you do should you have the power to help, at the cost of your time and effort.

 

1. Do you agree with the doctor? Is refusing to save someone when you could easily do so the same as killing them?
No, i don't agree with him.
2. Does great power come with great responsibility?
Yes it does
3. Would you still want a crazy OP cheat power despite being presented with this scenario?
Yes i do. I can just turn invisible and run away, then disguise myself as other person so i won't be pressured to save people
4. If you had the ability to heal anyone that you touch, would you spend all day in the hospital? Would you overwork yourself? Would you feel guilty about saying no to all the life-or-death patients trying to schedule an appointment because you’re thinking about going on vacation?
No i wouldn't overwork myself. I would still save some people but not to the point of overworking. I won't feel guilty, after all me being able to rest and not overworking means i would live and stay sane longer resulting in me saving more people.

 

*creates near-indestructible virus which can transform human bodies into a perfect state of health and can be transmitted thru food, water, air and contact*

*lies back and lets the world heal itself*

I'm assuming the virus will survive and multiply beyond the 1 m radius since being able to heal people means my manipulations won't reverse even if I leave the area.

 

I will save someone only when I want to do it and not forced to do it and shoving moral rhetorics to me. Push me too far, and with that much power I might even become the demon lord instead. A feared benevolent tyrant is better than an overworked saint.

 

I am a person who is not entirely reward driven BUT unless there is some direct reason to save any given person for any reason (whether it be I want them to be indebted to me or I gain some moral/ethical pleasure/fulfilment ect) will be directly assosiated with what I get out of it. It might seen sociopathic but I couldn't care less about people I can't get anything out of.

That might seem a bit contradictory and controversial but that's my opinion on it.

 

Purge them all.
They are clearly overpopulated and I see no reason to act like a giant hypocrite that will try to save everyone they see just to stroke their massive ego.

 

Are they paying me what my services are worth? After all, if I get hungry and want to eat, I need to pay for my own food. So there's no reason why I need to offer my own services for free.

 

1. Do you agree with the doctor? Is refusing to save someone when you could easily do so the same as killing them?
Not quite, though you probably should step in to help people when you can.

2. Does great power come with great responsibility?
All power comes with some responsibility. However it's also the responsibility of those without power to not mooch off of the fortunate and be a general nuisance. Everyone has a life they want to live and if someone try's to interfere with mine I'm less inclined to like them.

3. Would you still want a crazy OP cheat power despite being presented with this scenario?
Sure, I just spent a few hours playing factorio some more, so I'm ready to enjoy many hours of automation, management, and refinement to help manage the ungodly population this planet seems to have.

4. If you had the ability to heal anyone that you touch, would you spend all day in the hospital? Would you overwork yourself? Would you feel guilty about saying no to all the life-or-death patients trying to schedule an appointment because you’re thinking about going on vacation?
I don't think having a ton of power that I can only use close range is worth spending all your time on. Really making large scale improvements is far more efficient, and the more refined the process becomes the easier it is to take breaks. Honestly I do what I think to be right, but I'm actually a pretty detached person and would probably be fine with taking some vacations here and there. I might also just dissapear some day and go ignore the problem all together if it becomes too naggy. I've got my goals as well, and I'd rather put my efforts where I want than where other people tell me I should. I could do so many things with those powers, and helping people one by one seems far too inefficient and boring.

I'm just ranting now I guess. I'd probably actually just help a few people for show, and then go off with vague words about mass producing a cure (if others can cure the issue I bet I could make something that can cause the illness enemas) and then I'd go back to doing computer stuff and make a bunch of microprocessors for cheap. I've been spending a lot of time recently just researching the entirety of basic computer architecture, and how I could implement different things with varying amounts of wealth. I'd love to build a tech empire in another world...

Okay, 2am ramblings over.