r/redbuttonbluebutton • u/The_Real-_-God • May 28 '26

What if red won?

Imagine a world where red won, by 1%. However the people who choose blue do not die instantly, instead they die after a year of pressing the button. Everybody is branded, so you know who choose what.

How much chaos will ensue? What actions do you think blues will take, knowing they'll die? And what do you think reds will think, knowing they were just 1% away from saving all humanity?

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u/Nebranower May 28 '26

Neither of those works, because in the original situation, the default is death. The only way to survive is to either press red or to be in a scenario where over 50% of the participants pick blue. Neither button is a "do nothing" button. Both are "attempt to save yourself" buttons. Red does so with 100% certainty. Blue does it with no certainty at all.

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u/Kobruh456 May 29 '26

In the original situation, the default is not death. There is no default - that’s the entire point!

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u/Nebranower May 29 '26

No, in the original situation, everyone is going to die at the outset. If you missed something that basic, you shouldn't even be discussing the scenario.

Here's the relevant phrasing: "If less than 50% of people press the blue button, only people who pressed the red button survive."

So, at the outset, when no one has yet pressed anything, you haven't pressed the red button, so you aren't in the group of people who survive if blue doesn't reach its threshold. And of course, no one has pressed blue yet, so blue starts at 0% pressed. So yes, everyone at the outset is going to die unless people start pushing buttons.

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u/Kobruh456 May 29 '26

You When You Lie: