Poll: What would you do if you found a Death Note

Scarim Coral

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I would soo used it for personal gain mainly anyone that had wrong me in my life (mainly the past manager and formers friends from high school).

Alternatively (if my moral compass won't allow me to commit murder) was there a consequence for having the Death Note in posession but don't use it at all? I mean I would want a Shinigami for a friend as long he/ she does requite fruit on a daily basis (I need my fruits too)!
 

Heronblade

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Elfgore said:
Edit: To the people who are not burning it, you really need to think about your decision. You're underestimating the power you have in your hands. You say you'll only kill people who deserve it, but can you prove that they deserve it? Can you honestly tell me that after a bad day at work/school, that you won't go home and kill the bastard you made it bad? I think some of you are putting way to much trust in yourselves. I would consider myself a generally good person, but I don't think I could handle that power. It would change me. No one on earth deserves this power.
This attitude is a pessimistic, naive, and ultimately self destructive remnant of the old world viewpoint of humanity in general.

The idea that power inevitably corrupts is absolutely and utterly false, a nice little excuse for people trying to explain away the choices of evil individuals. Power is an enabler and a catalyst, it can and will change people, but whether it does so in a positive or negative manner is based on the choices and basic nature of the individual in question. Throughout history, we have seen multiple examples of individuals whose moral character became all the stronger once they had clout to back up their actions. The problem we face, and the reason for the meme in question, is that those who desire and seek power are those most likely to get it, and also the most likely to abuse it.

That stated, I will agree that I wouldn't trust quite a few of the people here who say they would keep the book to use it responsibly, but that's mainly due to the cavalier attitudes displayed.

P.S. Yes, I can definitively say that there are people who deserve death in this world. I can also definitively say that there are people that the world would be better off without their influence. As someone invested in trying to find a way to build a better future for all of humanity, I'm more concerned with the second category, but conveniently enough, both lists match up fairly well.
 

Elfgore

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Heronblade said:
Elfgore said:
Edit: To the people who are not burning it, you really need to think about your decision. You're underestimating the power you have in your hands. You say you'll only kill people who deserve it, but can you prove that they deserve it? Can you honestly tell me that after a bad day at work/school, that you won't go home and kill the bastard you made it bad? I think some of you are putting way to much trust in yourselves. I would consider myself a generally good person, but I don't think I could handle that power. It would change me. No one on earth deserves this power.
This attitude is a pessimistic, naive, and ultimately self destructive remnant of the old world viewpoint of humanity in general.

The idea that power inevitably corrupts is absolutely and utterly false, a nice little excuse for people trying to explain away the choices of evil individuals. Power is an enabler and a catalyst, it can and will change people, but whether it does so in a positive or negative manner is based on the choices and basic nature of the individual in question. Throughout history, we have seen multiple examples of individuals whose moral character became all the stronger once they had clout to back up their actions. The problem we face, and the reason for the meme in question, is that those who desire and seek power are those most likely to get it, and also the most likely to abuse it.

That stated, I will agree that I wouldn't trust quite a few of the people here who say they would keep the book to use it responsibly, but that's mainly due to the cavalier attitudes displayed.

P.S. Yes, I can definitively say that there are people who deserve death in this world. I can also definitively say that there are people that the world would be better off without their influence. As someone invested in trying to find a way to build a better future for all of humanity, I'm more concerned with the second category, but conveniently enough, both lists match up fairly well.
You state your opinions like they are proven fact. Show me proof that power doesn't corrupt. And who decided what a better future for humanity is? You, me, other people. Some might say humanity gone is a better world to live in.

Edit: Forget about this post. I don't have the willpower nor attitude right now to debate about the nature of humanity.
 

DeltaEdge

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Hm, I'd probably keep it and use it for personal gain, but that depends on the circumstance. If it could somehow be proven to me that this Death Note falling into the hands of humans was just a one time event, and by destroying it, I could completely eradicate its existence from the world, and that it would never come into the world again(at least, not in my lifetime), then I'd probably burn that shit, because I like having a properly functioning world without any sort of godmod powers breaking it.

But if there was a risk of another one appearing in my lifetime, or other people may or may not have one, then I'd probably hold onto it, because the world is pretty much fucked(well, humans are anyways) just by this thing's existence, so I may as well hold onto it for security. I don't believe that I would be someone who could just use it for "the greater good", and I think it would be impossible to not become morally corrupt trying to uphold life/death judgement on the entire world based on my own moral compass. So it would pretty much be used for personal reasons, not for some "greater good TM".

That being said, I can't really think of anyone that I'd actually kill with the note. I probably wouldn't kill terrorist organizations and such because I don't think myself qualified to properly pass judgement onto them as to whether they are "evil" enough to deserve death, I probably wouldn't use it on enemies or anything, because that would be pretty damn petty and I wouldn't consider how they treated me personally to be worthy of death, even if I hate them. So if enemy nation/organization leaders and personal enemies are out, then since I probably won't be killing criminals either, that pretty much just leaves me with people who wish to cause immediate potentially lethal harm to me, or people I care about. That'd still be pretty difficult though as I'd need to know their names, which doesn't seem that likely.

Hm, well I guess I really can't see myself using this thing much, if at all. I'd be a pretty damn boring harbinger of death I guess. I guess it's because I don't really think that anyone is undeniably deserving of only death, because everyone has the capacity to change, and I would be denying them that opportunity by killing them which would be a failing on my part.
 

Heronblade

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Elfgore said:
You state your opinions like they are proven fact. Show me proof that power doesn't corrupt. And who decided what a better future for humanity is? You, me, other people. Some might say humanity gone is a better world to live in.
If you think I stated that power doesn't corrupt at all you need to read my post again, and if you can't think of a few counterexamples on your own, you need to get reacquainted with certain historical figures.

P.S. No, I am not blind enough to believe that I, or any human being, knows what is best for everyone. It does not however take an omniscient to recognize trends harmful to huge numbers of human beings and trace their sources. Chaos and death are typically harmful, not just to the people involved, but society in general. Since humanity's greatest potential is only realized within the context of a stable and peaceful society, nullifying certain critical elements, by one means or another, is all but required. All too often a peaceful means of doing so is not available, and I for one think that this is a much better option than the usual method of sending out troops to kill loads of people that may or may not have themselves done anything wrong. I would MUCH rather achieve the goal in question via constructive means than destructive, but not using such a tool, or preferably finding someone more suited to use it than I, would be a waste of an opportunity with massive potential.
 

Cruickshank

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Ronald Nand said:
EDIT: I didn't mention that using it may result in you staying in the Death God world after death, as a Death Note user can't go to heaven or hell when they die, although in the Anime we don't definitively see this happen to a death note user.
they actually do mention in the manga what happens to users of the death note, they cannot go to heaven or hell so they end up in a state of 'mu' which is basically nothingness; ryuuk does tell light at one point that using the death note does not make you a shinigami, what is left unsaid until the very end of the show is that as punishment for him using the death note, his soul will cease to exist.
 

DudeistBelieve

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Depends on the will of the Death God attached to it. If we recall Ryukk did it out of sheer boredom, and when the game was going to be done and he told Light he'd be the one to kill Light. So if the Death God attached to it is like that, then I suppose I'm passing it on to someone else.

If there is no Death God, I'm holding on to it. It be like a handgun, just hold on to it and hope to hell I never have to use it.

I mean theres an idea in my head, take the name of one of the worlds super rich, have him bury 2 Million dollars in cash in a certain location. Heart Attack. Dig up the money and be set for life.... but I think If I crossed that line, things wouldn't end well for me. Use it once, use it again.

Ronald Nand said:
For anyone who hasn't seen the anime, the death note is a mystical book where you can kill anyone by simply imagining their face and writing their name, so you can kill anyone if you know their name and face. They come from Shinigamis whom are death gods.

Imagine you find a death note dropped by a shinigami, whom explains how it works and shows you proof of it working without killing anyone. What would you do with it?

When i say use it sparingly I mean you use it very infrequently writing the names of people you view as extremely bad/evil, your essentially writing a few names a year if any.

When i say using it extensively i mean you use it frequently writing the names of people you view as bad/evil, to the extent your writing a names everyday.

EDIT: I didn't mention that using it may result in you staying in the Death God world after death, as a Death Note user can't go to heaven or hell when they die, although in the Anime we don't definitively see this happen to a death note user.
I thought Ryukk admits to light at one point there is no heaven or hell, that it doesn't matter what a person does in their life Death Is Equal.
 

MeChaNiZ3D

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I'd use it reasonably scarcely for politicians, dictators, and other people I deem to have a large, bad influence on the world. This extends to terrorist groups and CEOs. I have read some of the other posts, so I'll clarify by saying possibly less scarcely than most for this purpose. There's the possibility of killing a particular family member with it if the situation gets dire, but I could live with myself if I did. I definitely wouldn't kill anyone I had a positive opinion of for personal gain.
 

chadachada123

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I'd take it.

Evil, corrupt dictators? All gone. Evil, corrupt politicians and Presidents and Prime Ministers? All gone. Evil, corrupt CEOs? all gone.

Of course, I'd do extensive research before actually writing their names, but each time, I would make sure to have them die by something along the lines of "The victim carves 'I am purged from humanity for my inhumanity' before dying of blood loss."

Cowabungaa said:
=
Torque2100 said:
Immediately write the following names in it;

Barack Obama

Joseph Biden

Nancy Pelosi

Harry Reid.
Not a fan of the Democrats eh. Funny hearing that from a European perspective. From our p.o.v you guys are finally making a small bit of progress.
Trust me. Despite media praisings of our current President, all of his actions have just been an extension or escalation of the exact things the world hated Bush for.

(I would do a LOT more than just evil Democrats. All of those in power, no matter their country, who abuse their power would be eliminated, such that humanity finally progresses beyond war-loving apes).
 

Anget Colslaw

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Oh, the fun to be had. My most frequent targets would be any moron or jackass in the positions of power (corporate executives, politicians, corrupt police officers, etc.)

But first and and most importantly: Bye-bye Capcom and EA!
 

Bat Vader

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Jasper van Heycop said:
If I ever find the Death Note the world's going to be a lot emptier a place, some people need a good killing. Does writing down everyone ever associated with the Westboro Baptist Church count like genocide?
Would it just be the people still associated with the WBC or also the people that have gotten out and hated their time in the WBC?

On Topic: I would lock it away and only use if I felt the need was great enough to either help better the world or help save someone.
 

Raku-Gosha

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Hindsight is 20/20 We (well almost everyone this show's old as hell) all have a clear knowledge of it's working and limitations as well as examples of the logical extremes such power could take us.

Not going to say people can't hypothesize scenarios but those who've seen the show (like myself) will have flawed and deeply skewed answers. So take that with a grain a salt.


As for me I'd burn it. While eating potato chips. Oh yeah.


Come at me. my Names Red Wasabi b****es.
 

WanderingBiscuits

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Apr 19, 2010
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I'm an atheist. So no heaven and hell is pretty much what i expected lol. So, I would definitely use it. Incredibly sparingly, but i would use it. Pedophiles, Rapists, Cult Leaders and Terrorists names would be added.
 

Flames66

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I would follow the advice of a wise old Wizard


My plan is to lock it away somewhere that is very difficult to get to, with a key that is stored somewhere else difficult to reach. It could be acquired and used, but only in the direst of circumstances.
 

CorvusFerreum

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Anomynous 167 said:
CorvusFerreum said:
That's a tricky one since the effects of the Death Note is unable deliver fatal colateral damage due to the following rule:
How To Use said:
Even though only one name is written in the Death Note, if it influences and causes other humans that are not written in it to die, the victim?s cause of death will be a heart attack.
In otherwords, you planning to give the universe a heart attack (which'll result in everyone dieing cause the universe they live in just died?) Then I guess you're outa luck.
I think you misunderstand the universe. It's not like we are withnin the universe, it's more like we are a part of it. What you suggest is like saying a victim wouldn't die because it would cause the death of his cells as colleteral damage. I also think the universes equivalent of a heartattack would be some form of spontanous collaps. The question wether it would work isn't really one of colleteral damage, it's more one of wether or not the notes power is strong enough.