Is going to war and killing humans ethical?
Contributed by DH.
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Several publications rank MBA programs and, as part of the ranking, ask MBA students to respond to a student satisfaction survey. Students are frequently urged not to air their grievances in the survey, because it hurts the school ranking and therefore the value of their degree. The question: is it ethical to provide rose-tinted responses to the survey to boost the ranking?
Contributed by an MBA student.
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The famous philosopher René Descartes advocated the vivisection of animals (dissection while the animal is alive) and practiced it himself. He argued that this is ethical because animals are biological machines and therefore suffer no pain, even if they seem to scream in agony. Human beings are different, because our bodily mechanisms are linked to a nonmaterial substance we call the mind or soul (a view known as Cartesian dualism). The soul can experience pain when the human body is assaulted, but we need have no ethical concern about animal suffering. Is Descartes right?
Dilemma 11 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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Doctor D operates an organ transplant shop. Four of his current patients require a heart, kidney, lung, and stomach, which cannot be obtained quickly enough to save their lives. However, another patient, whom Dr. D has just cured, lies sleeping. If the patient were, let’s say, to take a sudden turn for the worse, his organs would save four lives. It seems like a reasonable trade, no?
Dilemma 8 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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Zjamel’s boyfriend Bernard seems to be spending more time with Ethel than with her. Finally, Zjamel asks the question: “Are you having an affair with Ethel?”
Bernard is, in fact, having an affair with Ethel but doesn’t regard it as “serious.” Ethel is married, and Bernard sees himself as committed to Zjamel over the long term. He doesn’t want to upset Zjamel, who has been depressed lately, and so he answers, “Of course not, darling.”
Zjamel now feels much better. After a few months, Bernard and Ethel get tired of each other, and everyone forgets about their little fling.
Was Bernard’s lie ethical?
Dilemma 7 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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Sam’s live-in partner Leslie has a taste for expensive gadgets, such as a toaster that burns today’s weather report on each slice (but ruins the toast), or a solar-powered outdoor fountain (that stopped working the first day). An unsolicited catalog arrives in the mail, addressed to Leslie. Seeing that it is chock-full of similarly expensive contraptions, Sam quietly get rids of it before Leslie gets home. Is this OK?
Dilemma 6 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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The Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted in 1971 by psychologist Philip Zimbardo, placed college students in make-believe roles of prisoner and guard, beginning with realistic arrests carried out by the local police. The experiment went on for several days, during which the guards became increasingly abusive, and the prisoners increasing submissive, in a manner reminiscent of humiliation-based “reality TV” shows — only more extreme. The experiment was terminated early, after 6 days, for this reason.
Dilemma 3 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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The battleship Northern Spirit is torpedoed, and its crew launch the few lifeboats that remained undamaged. The captain is aboard of the overloaded lifeboats, which is surrounded by screaming sailors destined to perish in the icy waters. They beg to be hauled aboard, but the captain fears the boat will sink. What should he do?
A young cabin boy finally manages to grasp the boat and begins to pull himself aboard, as the boat tips dangerously. The ship’s cook, Bert, is nearest the boy, and the captain orders Bert to push him back into the sea. What should Bert do?
Dilemmas 1 and 2 in 101 Ethical Dilemmas by Martin Cohen.
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Ethical Decisions 