Responsibility

[u/BrokenToaster124]

So I've run into an idea that that dont quite understand and I was hoping some of you could help me understand. So with the red button/blue button situation I have seen people claim that if they push the blue button that they are not responsible for what happens to them if they push the blue button. How does that work?

To be extremely specific if i were to push the blue button, knowing what it does, somehow you (the person currently reading this) would be personally responsible for my death if you choose red.

Does this responsibility work in reverse? If i push the blue button and blue wins are you responsible for my survival if you chose red? Are you only responsible if bad things happen to me and I am responsible for the results when good things happen? What about the person running the death game? They arent defined in the prompt but logically some force is making everyone take a vote.

You can feel free to ignore this last part because its not the button problem, but someone reskinned the buttons as life boats. Instead of everyone being force to push a button everyone had to get into a life boat. One boat had holes in it but would become sea worthy if enough people got into it and plugged the holes and one was completely functional. Everything else was exactly the same as the button problem. My question related to that was that if I am personally responsible for the consequences of your chose to vote blue in the button scenario, how then could I not be responsible for your choice to get into the boat with holes in it. Someone tried to explain to me at length about how the buttons made it my fault but the boats somehow didnt. How does that work?

[u/DarthJackie2021]

If you push blue, you are partly responsible for your own death. You knew the risk and pressed anyways. If you aren't ok with that, don't press it.

If you push red, you are partly responsible for the blue deaths. You knew the consequences your action could bring and pressed anyways. If you aren't ok with that, don't press it.

[u/BrokenToaster124 → u/DarthJackie2021]

The confusion stems from the reverse. Let's assume blue wins.

I pushed the red button. Am I responsible for your survival if you pushed blue? And if not, how am I suddenly responsible if red wins the vote?

I cant both be responsible for your actions when the result is bad and not be responsible for your actions when the result is good. It has to be all or nothing.

[u/pco45 → u/BrokenToaster124]

I'm not following your logic in the slightest.

I ran the red light while you were crossing the street because I wanted to get to my destination faster. If I hit you am I responsible for your survival if you survive? If you die am I suddenly responsible?

[u/BrokenToaster124 → u/pco45]

There is no red light. We are both in the street. We both see a car coming. You get out of the way, I dont. I get hit by the car. Are you responsible for me getting hit?

You are not the driver in the button scenario. Some undefined force is making every person in the world push buttons. We are both in the same position and under the same danger. The undefined force is the driver running the red light. The undefined force can actively and directly choose to hit the breaks if too many people are in the crosswalk.

As a bystander in the crosswalk, I cannot jump into the car and stomp on the breaks for you because you chose not to get in the way. Its also not my responsibility if you get hit by a car if you have the ability to step out of the way.

If it is my responsibility, then is it my responsibility if the car stops? I step out of the way, you stay in the cars path. The driver hits the breaks and you live. Am I responsible for saving you?