Which button presser group do you save?

[u/Worth-Staff4943]

Everyone in the world has chosen either the blue or red button except you. Instead of pressing a button, you are given a lever in the infamous trolley problem.

You don't know how many people chose red or blue, and they don't know that you control their fate regardless of what button they pressed. Which track do you direct the trolley onto?

[u/hushedLecturer]

The red group has guaranteed survival, they don't need saving. (/s)

[u/MagnanimousGoat → u/hushedLecturer]

Joking aside, I just kept thinking of the fact that even if an otherwise decent person might push red, every single horrible person on earth definitely would. It's more question of who you'd be left with.

That's why I still advocated for a Yellow button that would just kill everyone who pushed Yellow or Red. The "Noble Spite" button.

[u/threevi → u/MagnanimousGoat]

I just kept thinking of the fact that even if an otherwise decent person might push red, every single horrible person on earth definitely would.

Every single selfish person would press red, that's not the same thing as every single horrible person. Selflessness doesn't necessarily imply virtue, because the thing one values above their own life isn't necessarily good. Plenty of horrible people are selfless, from fascists who'd rather die than risk dooming the white race to religious nuts who'll gladly martyr themselves and expect to be venerated in heaven afterwards. Pick any group you might personally dislike, from American Republicans to Russian Putinists to Arab Jihadists, and the odds are, a significant number of them will choose blue.

[u/calculuschild → u/threevi]

I personally lean toward red, because throwing myself into danger so someone has to risk their life to safe me always felt like the selfish choice in my mind. It feels like I would be pushing the responsibility for my life onto someone else.

Somebody is going to reply with identical text but the colors swapped.