Your plane crashes

[b&wpac4]

To add:

I think, Zaac, your point of view is more of a Faustian deal situation. This dictator is not "the Devil" bound to the wording of the contract in such as way he can be "tricked". This is a dictator who can basically do as he pleases. To be honest, we have no way of knowing how honest a person he is. That's why my first question was do we have reason to suspect he will live up to his word.

My assessment of the situation is that we can pretty much assume he is not a trustworthy individual. Killing yourself or one of the children will likely still result in the death of them all. In fact, unless you are Rambo and can fight your way out, all the children more than likely are going to die as you are probably going to die. Based on that assessment, your best bet is to not shoot any of the children, and go out in a blaze of glory. At the very least, you take out some of his guards and if he's stupid enough to be nearby when he guard open the doors to kill you, you may get to pick him off.

 

[Avatar]

To add:

I think, Zaac, your point of view is more of a Faustian deal situation. This dictator is not "the Devil" bound to the wording of the contract in such as way he can be "tricked". This is a dictator who can basically do as he pleases. To be honest, we have no way of knowing how honest a person he is. That's why my first question was do we have reason to suspect he will live up to his word.

My assessment of the situation is that we can pretty much assume he is not a trustworthy individual. Killing yourself or one of the children will likely still result in the death of them all. In fact, unless you are Rambo and can fight your way out, all the children more than likely are going to die as you are probably going to die. Based on that assessment, your best bet is to not shoot any of the children, and go out in a blaze of glory. At the very least, you take out some of his guards and if he's stupid enough to be nearby when he guard open the doors to kill you, you may get to pick him off.

I'd rather be a kid in the room with me than you. My odds of living would be substantially higher.

 

[b&wpac4]

I'd rather be a kid in the room with me than you. My odds of living would be substantially higher.

Why do you suggest that? The dictator has already locked them in a room for some purpose. Why do you assume the dictator is going to let them go anyway?

 

[Zaac]

I imagine if you take that route, he will kill all the children anyway, assuming this is a ruthless dictator.

I'm dealing with what the OP said. And he said

Then he commands you to kill one of the children, otherwise he'll kill all of them.

So the quandry is how do I save all the children based upon what the OP said? I remove me. He commanded ME to kill one or he will kill them all. As a ruthless dictator he has always had the option of killing them all anyhow.

But sticking to what the OP said he wants ME to kill one or he'll kill them all. And if ME is removed by sacrifice, then no kid dies and the 100 are saved.

That's sticking to what's in the OP.

If you step outside the confines of the OP, of course the dictator can do whatever he wants. He always could. But if he sticks to the parameters of the OP the way the OP stated, the kids are all saved if I sacrifice my life.

 

[Zaac]

To add:

I think, Zaac, your point of view is more of a Faustian deal situation. This dictator is not "the Devil" bound to the wording of the contract in such as way he can be "tricked". This is a dictator who can basically do as he pleases. To be honest, we have no way of knowing how honest a person he is. That's why my first question was do we have reason to suspect he will live up to his word.

My assessment of the situation is that we can pretty much assume he is not a trustworthy individual. Killing yourself or one of the children will likely still result in the death of them all. In fact, unless you are Rambo and can fight your way out, all the children more than likely are going to die as you are probably going to die. Based on that assessment, your best bet is to not shoot any of the children, and go out in a blaze of glory. At the very least, you take out some of his guards and if he's stupid enough to be nearby when he guard open the doors to kill you, you may get to pick him off.

You're thinking too deeply. The OP set forth the parameters. If you're gonna step outside those parameters, then naturally the evil dictator can do whatever he wants under ANY scenario.

Using the OP parameters, if I sacrifice my life and allow one of the kids to remove me from the equation, they all live since the evil dictator's requirement was that I kill one or he will kill them all.

 

[b&wpac4]

I'm dealing with what the OP said. And he said

So the quandry is how do I save all the children based upon what the OP said? I remove me. He commanded ME to kill one or he will kill them all. As a ruthless dictator he has always had the option of killing them all anyhow.

But sticking to what the OP said he wants ME to kill one or he'll kill them all. And if ME is removed by sacrifice, then no kid dies and the 100 are saved.

That's sticking to what's in the OP.

If you step outside the confines of the OP, of course the dictator can do whatever he wants. He always could. But if he sticks to the parameters of the OP the way the OP stated, the kids are all saved if I sacrifice my life.

He also said suicide isn't an option and killing yourself is suicide. I don't care what wordplay you use, it is still self-killing.

 

[Avatar]

Why do you suggest that? The dictator has already locked them in a room for some purpose. Why do you assume the dictator is going to let them go anyway?

Two possibilities. One they're all going to die anyway. In which case shooting one makes no difference. Two, shooting one saves 99.

Not shooting 1 guarantees 100 deaths. Shooting 1 gives 99 the possibility of survival. I'm all about the numbers.

 

[Zaac]

He also said suicide isn't an option and killing yourself is suicide. I don't care what wordplay you use, it is still self-killing.

It wasn't suicide. Suicide is self-inflicted. So how is it self-killing if I'm not the one killing me? And it isn't murder. I volunteered my life to save the 100.

 

[b&wpac4]

Two possibilities. One they're all going to die anyway. In which case shooting one makes no difference. Two, shooting one saves 99.

Not shooting 1 guarantees 100 deaths. Shooting 1 gives 99 the possibility of survival. I'm all about the numbers.

I said before trading 1 life for 99 is a bargain.

 

[b&wpac4]

It wasn't suicide. Suicide is self-inflicted. So how is it self-killing if I'm not the one killing me? And it isn't murder. I volunteered my life to save the 100.

So... you'd rather one of the little kids have the memory of killing a human at such a young age? That's really noble.

 

[Avatar]

I said before trading 1 life for 99 is a bargain.

Then we agree.

 

[b&wpac4]

Then we agree.

The thread's been open a while. Taking everything said in the OP at face value, I kill one of the kids. I just don't believe the real world works in the way presented in the OP.

 

[Avatar]

It wasn't suicide. Suicide is self-inflicted. So how is it self-killing if I'm not the one killing me? And it isn't murder. I volunteered my life to save the 100.

Assisted suicide is still suicide, according to the law.

 

[Zaac]

So... you'd rather one of the little kids have the memory of killing a human at such a young age? That's really noble.

I'd rather they be alive.

 

[Avatar]

The thread's been open a while. Taking everything said in the OP at face value, I kill one of the kids. I just don't believe the real world works in the way presented in the OP.

Well, duh.

Edit: As for the thread being open a while, I've read every post.

 

[b&wpac4]

I'd rather they be alive.

Your solution guarantees you don't know if they are or not.

 

[Zaac]

Assisted suicide is still suicide, according to the law.

According to what law? I'm in a foreign country run by a ruthless dictator who seems to make laws on the go. How yall know what the laws are?

 

[Avatar]

According to what law? I'm in a foreign country run by a ruthless dictator who seems to make laws on the go. How yall know what the laws are?

Because the dictator is my sister. As long as we're making stuff up.

 

[Zaac]

Your solution guarantees you don't know if they are or not.

I don't have to know. My solution guarantees that he doesn't kill them all because I didn't kill one. If I'm not around, there can be no command that I kill one in order to save 99.

 

[Zaac]

Because the dictator is my sister. As long as we're making stuff up.

Like I said, in that regard, if everyone is gonna keep adding to the parameters set forth in the OP, then no scenario will ever work in which the evil dictator doesn't have the option of still killing all the children.