A question for you, escapists.

[MASTACHIEFPWN]

I'm one of those shallow, grim people who's target in life is not reachable by any means of any man, simply because free will of another exists.

I wouldn't press the button, in fact, I would most likely punch the offerer in the face.

 

[Charli]

Well, if my "every whim" can include an end to world hunger, or if I can use some of my newly obtained wealth to save lots of lives, then sure.

That's the catch isn't it, I would do it if that's on the list of 'whims'.

If not then sod it, my own selfish desires aren't worth 5 lives.

 

[Use_Imagination_here]

Hell yeah! Since I believe in the multiverse theory, I believe that an Infinite amount of people die every nanosecond. 5 more doesn't matter in the slightest.

Plus since my version of "Most amazing life ever" includes curing all disease, I think the ends justify the means here.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Sure I'd press the button. It's 5 people I'd never have met anyway. Who cares?

 

[sam42ification]

but i'm no where near smart enough to come close to that.

"Everybody is a genius, but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid" - acredited to einstein (may or may not be him)

Everyone has their worth, and their own pool of knowledge that no-one else knows.

You never know what you may accomplish in life, even when it's nearly over.

Thank you but i wasn't really saying i'm stupid i'm just saying i would never be some one to research cancer. I'm much more likely to excell in music than cancer research.

 

[MaoExE]

Well....
What if the button is offered to another family after you press it and than it kills you.

I.E The cycle like in the the Twilight Zone version.

On-topic: That button would be pressed faster than you could say, "wh--"

 

[vivster]

if it has no consequences for me then i'd do it
i have lots of things i want... i won't have to use it much since i'll articulate my wishes effectively but soon it will become second nature and the "bad consequences" that occur when i push it will be forgotten

Spoiler

also there is a very good chance that people i don't like will be among the victims...
and my philosophy is that the vast majority of earth's people are people i don't like
so it's kinda win win

 

[manic_depressive13]

Can I keep pressing it?

Honestly though, I probably wouldn't. I think. It would really depend on my mood at the time.

 

[Tesral]

I couldn't push that button fast enough. On average 1.8 people die a second anyway, plus since the distribution of those 5 deaths is totally random there is no imbalance caused by it. Sucks for them, though.

(Although karma is probably going to screw me over with a 1 in 7 billion chance of one of those people being me)

 

[Lord Kodous]

Yes, I would press the button. Although, would I instantly get everything anybody could ever want? Because I don't want fame or extravagant food. Extravagant food wouldn't necessarily taste better than food I already like or know how to make myself. And all fame does for you is make it so you're annoyed everytime you go out into public by people who you've never met. But, having my every whim catered to would be nice, I could really get things moving in the right direction for everyone to live a better life. And having my dream home would be fucking awesome.

 

[A Distant Star]

It may sound cruel, but I would push it. I would then spend the rest of my natural life feeling guilty about it, but I would push it anyways. Why, because having my every whim catered to means I could save a lot more lives then just 5. I could create aid agencies, feed the hungry, cloths orphans. One act of evil and I could save thousands... I would hate myself for doing it, but I would hate myself even more for not.

 

[Tristan6928]

I'm not a big fan of cheats, even if it is in real life.

 

[Tipatap]

Yup.
Because somebody will mourn and cry and weep about somebody else. Five more people, five more lives? That's akin to asking me about ants.

 

[ShakyFiend]

Everyone in this forum has already answered yes.

You have a computer, therefore you are reasonably well off.
You are aware that there are people in the world who are dying.
You are also aware that these people need money to survive.
You have therefore decided that your money and time is more important than those people.

Everyone presses it.

 

[Dr. Pepper Unlimited]

I'd push it...twice...I have my reasons.

 

[crazyfoxdemon]

I PRESS THE HELL OUT OF THE BUTTON...

I am not a nice person, and since I will not know these 5 people then I'm confident that they won't be among the very few people I care about. Outside of that exclusive group, I really don't care what happens to anyone else...

 

[Darius Brogan]

Yes, because waaaay deep down I; just like almost every other human alive, am a selfish, arrogant little puke that doesn't care much for human life. Over the years humans have shown me that there are almost no redeeming qualities about them, so why should I be the saint?

I'm aware that there are good people out there, but the odds of my button-press killing five, truly good people is roughly 1/100'000'000 (give or take a hundred million or so), whilst the other 99'999'999 would gladly press the button.

Say what you will about this view-point, but it's technically irrefutable, since every human alive has their price, and some would kill you personally for a sandwich.

 

[CharrHearted]

They may not mean anything to me... But those people would damn well mean someone to someone else... I'm not going to commit myself to greed at the cost of a life! I don't wish to cause pain in other peoples hearts... That's my answer..

 

[Dascylus]

Yeah, I'd press that button so hard.
7 billion minus 5 individuals... I'm ok with that.
I'd worry more about the abuses of giving one man (or lady) that much power.
I promise I would abuse the shit out of my privileges.

 

[CharrHearted]

YES! Every single one of my whims, for the rest of my life? For only 5 people? I would kill a hundred for that opportunity, dammit! 5 is nothing! NOTHING!

There are almost 7 billion people in the world. 5 people are gone because of me. Other than myself, nobody would know that I did it! These are people who I would never meet. Their deaths would not affect me at all, other than that I get anything I want in the future. This would be too good to be true!

What about the others? What about the family's whom will grieve over their lost family?

What if it's only an innocent baby girl... who dies when the family has already started to fall apart, their last hope... And you cut it's chain... You cause a chain reaction, causing more than just 5 deaths... Perhaps a brother is lost? Or who knows... Maybe the fates will be cruel... and extract one of your own family members from life... You need to read into the possibilities before you charge into anything... wouldn't you agree?