Brampton, Ontario CANADA Erg, I hate these questions. I guess it would depend on the situation. If my friend knew that by their death, 1000 other people could live then I think I might be okay with it. I don't think I would be able to make that call until I was face to face with it though. Nicci, 27
Las Vegas, NV USA How could you compare 1,000 people to one? What a sad question if I had to make that decision. Laney
TX USA Lives of 1000 strangers. Talia, 24
Wilton, CT USA 1000 strangers Nicole2, 20
FL USA Naturally the life of my friend would be worth more to me but no one in their right mind would say that it would be better to sacrifice 1000 lives for 1. Reba, 50+
Silver Spring, MD USA My friend. Celeste, 30
Colorado Springs, CO USA This question is morbid as all hell and at first I wasn't going to even give it much thought let alone answer it. However, after sitting here staring at it for a few more minutes, I guess I'll give it a shot. I honestly believe that my dearest friend would feel that the lives of 1000 strangers were more worthy to spare than her own, so I'd have to go with the strangers. After all was said and done, I'd make it my business to tell each of the thousand all about my dearest friend.
Fisch, 46
Preston, CT
USA
my god what a difficult question. If I were to answer this logically, I would have to say 1000 people. Because each and every of of those 1000 people mean as much to someone else as my best friend means to me. To lose her would cause incredible emotional pain... so if you multiply that by 1000 lives, it is easy to see which of the two choices would cause more pain in this world. On a purely emotional level though, save my friend, screw those other people.
Maggie, 22
Sandwich, IL
USA
I don't think that is a philosophically realistic question to ask. Naturally it'd be selfish of me to prioritize one life over 1,000 -- each of those 1,000 people is probably someone else's dearest friend, after all. Yet if someone made me choose between saving that 1 or saving the 1,000, how could I look my friend in the eyes and tell them I don't choose them?
Katie2, 18
Detroit, MI
USA
The life of my dearest friend
Melodi, 19
Gahanna, OH
USA
Depends who the strangerss are.
Alias Irrelevante
Obviously 1000 lives are worth more than one and the loss of a dear friend is more painful than the loss of a 1000 strangers.
Jill, 61
Saylorsburg, PA USA
They are all equally important.
Laura, 37
Lowell, MA
USA
The life of a run-on sentence. Well, given that the world is severely overpopulated with humans, I'd have to say the life of my dearest friend. I know he's worth something, whereas the 1000 strangers may be complete jerks.
Karen, 22
Ames, IA
USA
This may sound mean, but I believe the life of 1000 strangers is more dear than the life of my friend. If 1000 people died, look how many people would be affected. Their brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, husbands, children, and friends and loved ones. My one friend would only affect 1% as many as they. I wouldn't want that kind of pain to come to thousands upon thousands of people even if they were strangers.
Stephanie, 25
TX USA
Wow...what a hard question!!! My philosophy teacher would want me to say the lives of 1000 strangers is morally more important than the life of one person, regardless of whether or not that person is my dearest friend. However, the selfish part of me wants to say my dearest friend (her name is Kristen!) is worth more to me than the lives of a bunch of people I don't know. I suppose though, that if it came down to it, I would have to choose the 1000 people because one life for many makes more sense...and I'm pretty sure Kristen would agree. Maybe I should have consulted her before answering
Angela, 18
Bella Vista, AR USA
The lives of a 1000 strangers.
Firelady, 23
Dallas, TX
USA
I don't think that is a philosophically realistic question to ask. Naturally it'd be selfish of me to prioritize one life over 1,000 -- each of those 1,000 people is probably someone else's dearest friend, after all. Yet if someone made me choose between saving that 1 or saving the 1,000, how could I look my friend in the eyes and tell them I don't choose them?
Katie2, 18
Ann Arbor, MI
USA
To whom? On an emotional level, the life of my dearest friend. To the world, the lives of a thousand people. Unless, of course, my friend was going to discover the cure for cancer or would negotiate a lasting peace in the middle east or the thousand strangers were hard-core criminals or ...! Any computer analysis would say there was insufficient data to answer the question.
Jane, 62
West Linn, OR
USA
All lives are valuable and how horrible to choose. If I had to though, I'd choose the 1000 over the one.
Felicia, 36
Lowell, MA
USA
the life of my dearest friend.
Patty
I think that this question needs some criteria- like is it worth more to me or is it worth more to the world? The life of my best friend is worth more to me than the lives of 1000 people I don't know. If I was in a situation where I had to choose the friend's life over 1000 other people's lives could I do that? Probrably not- in that situation I would probably choose the 1000 people over my best friend.
Shayna, 28
Somerville, MA USA
i really dont know i mean i hope i will never have to choose but if i had to the lives of 1000 people because thats too much blood on my hands if i did kill 1000 poeple
Alesha, 15
NJ USA