Is Killing Human Beings Wrong/Immoral?

Another God

Vote, and explain why it is immoral, isn't immoral or dependent on the situation as you believe the case to be.

Jonathan

It depends on the situation, unless you were being literal and really meant killing, not murdering, in which case it is always okay. To clarify, I define killing to be a just cause of death, while murder is senselessly causing death, (ie killing+just=murder-senseless).

Tail

Depends on the situation.

If a murderer would kill 10 people if not killed himself, it's only logical to kill him (if he cannot be stopped any other way).

Or, euthanasia. If a person suffers a lot and wants to die, it should be acceptable.

Another God

Well, i was being literal, where I literally mean 'killing' a human...ending their life, they exist no more. Killing someone is killing someone, I don't think you can change the definition of killing to have subjective connotations. Murder, sure, that's a word which has a subjective overtone. Killing, is the ending of life.

But I would take it by your reply then, that killing is OK depending on the circumstances.

maximus

AG, your phrasing of the question makes it so that i cannot respond in any way. and here's why-

your use of the terms "right" and "wrong" need to be clarified. do you mean that it is universally wrong, as in heaven and hell? or that it "wrong" in a society? the distinctions between these two scenerios are important. i do not believe that killing/ raping/ stealing/ ect. is "wrong" in a universal sence. it is however neccesary in a society. we could not survive as a group if we condoned the killing of each other.

to summerize, if you mean "immoral" in a universal sence then my answer is NO, it is not "wrong" (as these terms have no meaning). if you mean in a society, then YES AND NO, depending on the situation.

jammieg

It's almost always more wrong than right to kill human life because all life is of benefit and human life of most benefit to humans, even the bad humans(in prison) can show the good humans what not to do and maybe even prevent more bad ones. I'm too naive to claim understanding it and the only exception I can think of is that if it's either kill or be killed with no escape. War is a poor exception and almost always a poor solution in like fighting for one's own survival because we are not wild animals. Over time most wars reveal their stupidity and false ideologies that they spawned from. People can and do kill each other for all sorts of reasons, but I like to think that hardly anyone does because they know the consequences of it and for some may not be going to hell but likely a living hell when such actions are not for survival alone or euthanasia.

russ_watters

In addition to maximus's objection, I have another - the word "murder" has a specific definition. It means "unlawful killing." You can't say "depends on the situation" and then try to make the choice binary. Because "depends on the situation" means you DO consider different types of killing. Thats what situations are.

So maybe make a choice here: Do you want this poll to be binary or not?

1. Is killing a person a strictly binary moral question? Then:
2. (if yes) Is killing a person ok or not ok in a strictly binary sense? Or:
3. (if no) What are the conditions under which it could be acceptable?

I think you are looking to answer both questions in one poll, but you can't. However, from the responses it looks like people mostly agree that it is NOT a strictly binary question. It does depend on the situation. In that case each answer requires explanation (or maybe just more choices).

My personal belief is that people who try to make it a binary question do so because they are naive (consciously or unconsciously): they CAN'T or don't WANT to consider the necessary complications. Capital punsishment, self defense, war (different kinds), utilitarianism (immunizations), etc.

Another God

Of benefit to whom, and how so?

What makes you believe we are not wild animals? As far as I can tell, we are wild animals, because no superior alien race has domesticated us yet...

Another God

Well, to be honest, I don't really care about the poll. I put it there partly to attract people who felt like they could vote Right or Wrong, because it is to the people who believe that they can make that vote that I am most interested in. I am wondering what it is that they know which I don't.

Well that is reassuring to my logical mind, but even the people who have voted this, I am still more interested in hearing what conditions make them believe killing is right/wrong.

I am actually interested in finding out how much people have thougt about this, and what conclusions they have reached. My recent experience with this topic keeps making it seem like people never think about it, they just dogmatically accept that killing is wrong, and won't hear otherwise.

I hate indoctrination.

Ivan Seeking

For me this was very simple. I have a right to survive. If someone threatens my life directly, I have no problem defending myself.

I think the death penalty is always wrong.
I think that war is usually wrong.
There are times I think when killing someone like Saddam [I didn't support the war] does constitute a good greater than the sanctity of one or even several lives.

Edit: I wasn't going to share this but it seems appropriate. I was once kidnapped and held at gunpoint for about 3 hours. If I would have had a gun, I would have killed these guys [3 of them] without hesitation. I had never felt the true desire to kill before. As it was, I nearly crashed my truck on purpose thinking that I could kill them and still survive. In the end, they realized that they had the wrong guy and let me go! In this case, it seems that it was best that I had no weapons. I would have killed them beyond a doubt.

Another God

What do you mean by 'right to survive'? Why do you have this right? Is it not equally as true to say you have a right to die?

If the death penalty is always wrong, then how can you justify the killing of Saddam? Isn't that identical to the concept behind the death penelty????

Why is the death penalty always wrong anyway? Why is it wrong to kill those who have harmed others within their society to a large degree?

Ivan Seeking

Please see also the edit to the last post. If my attacker has a right to survive then so do I. If he chooses to violate my rights, he surrenders his own rights. If he has a right to die, then I will assist him in this matter; purely from the goodness of my heart.

[quote[/b]If the death penalty is always wrong, then how can you justify the killing of Saddam? Isn't that identical to the concept behind the death penelty????[/B][/QUOTE]

You've got me a bit on this one. Hmmmm. I see a difference but it is difficult to identify.... I guess this is like a bank robbery in progress. During the robbery, the robbers must be stopped first. I guess my position is consistent since I wouldn't support the death penalty for Saddam if captured. But if he is killed during the attempt to capture him, then oh well.

Because the justice system makes too many mistakes. Even one mistake is too many. Recent DNA testing has revealed that many people on death row are in fact innocent. I stand by the U.S. principle that it is better that a thousand guilty men go free than for one to be imprisoned unjustly. Since the justice system cannot be perfect, then how can the death penalty ever be applied with absolute confidence? One note: When the outgoing governor of Illinois learned of the recent revelation of problems with death penalty convictions, he commuted all standing death sentences...at least so it was reported. Maybe someone from Illinois can confirm this report?

Tail

maximus,
I think the author of the thread wants to know whether YOU consider it to be right or wrong. It is impossible for a human being to be an objective judge of anything, especially 'right' and 'wrong', so your opinion is all that can be asked, really...

Ivan Seeking,
how can war be not wrong?

Another God

Assuredly.I would agree to thatThis third statement doesn't follow from the other two. I mean, if you are assisting him in his right to die, then it could equally be said that he is assisting you in your right to die, from the goodness of his heart.

I don't think you really mean this last statement though. It doesn't really follow from anything you have said thus far. I assume it was an attempt at sarcasm/humour, but unfortunatly, I am trying to get to some sort of a conclusion atm, and so humour isn't on my mind.

I have a question for you: You started this post with "If my attacker has a right to survive", but you started the last post with "I have a right to survive". Was this just an innocent error, or are you implying that you personally have a right to life, and other people may or may not have this right?

I ask you again, where does this right come from, and what do you actually mean by "Right to life"?

So you don't agree to killing people...but you don't mind if people who you disagree with die through some 'Accident'... Did they have a right to life when the accident happened?


Innocent of what? 1000 men guilty of what, and save the man innocent of what?

Firstly, it seems that you have agreed that if someone kills, then they have denied their own 'right to life'. So on those grounds alone, the death penalty seems like a certainty. But you deny it on the fear of killing one man who is innocent of...killing? What if those thousand man keep killing the rest of their lives (ie: meaning they can never be let out of prison). Why should the rest of us have to pay to keep those men alive when they have revoked their right to life?

You will spare the lives of 1000 guilty men for fear of accidentally killing one innocent man, and yet you believe that there is nothing wrong with 'accidentally' killing a man just because he has a different moral system to the western world?

Thats unfair.

Ivan Seeking

I can never resist my little bit of sarcastic humor.

I am only asserting that either we both have a right to live or not. In either case the situation gives me just as much right as my attacker. If you want a reason, how about this one: I define that I have the right to live. I ask for no ones permission to do so.

This is a practical limitation that will change. I see this as a left over from the dark ages. Soon the bad guys will just go to sleep or something similar. No more guns.


This is a situation where the greater principle must come first. We seek to maximize justice. If a system is allowed to run amok - convicting innocent people at will - then the system and everyone's freedom is at risk or lost. Again, you seek a philosophical justification for a practical limitation.

quote][Firstly, it seems that you have agreed that if someone kills, then they have denied their own 'right to life'. So on those grounds alone, the death penalty seems like a certainty. But you deny it on the fear of killing one man who is innocent of...killing? What if those thousand man keep killing the rest of their lives (ie: meaning they can never be let out of prison). Why should the rest of us have to pay to keep those men alive when they have revoked their right to life?[/QUOTE]

In the former case my life is threatened directly. In the latter case, we seek the fairest result possible within the practical limitations of an imperfect system.

Our freedom has cost much more than 1000 lives. Would we waste the lives of a hundred thousand for a theoretical one thousand? That's unfair.

Another God

Perhaps we should remove the 'right to live' phrase altogether then, and just say "I do not want to die". I know it sounds a little less emotionally pleasing, but would you disagree that it achieves the same ends?

If you agree to what I have just said, would you then also agree that "Right to Life" is a meaningless concept?

I don't really understand, but that aside, I wonder who you mean when you say the bad guys.

This is getting a little off topic now, but I need to ask: What makes someone a Bad Guy?
Of course running amok is not an option...but we are talking about an honest mistake here...not a system running amok. Of course the law enforcers must be subject to the very same laws they are enforcing. As such, and keeping in mind that the DNA evidence which showed all of the mistakes that have been made in the past is also the very stuff which is very convincingly convicting the criminals these days, why is capital punishment wrong?


Oh no....the 'F' word.... That word has become truly disturbing. Does anyone have any idea what they are actually refering to when they use it anymore?

WHy is your freedom any more special than the freedom the rest of the world has?

Ivan Seeking

No. I define that I have a right to live. I ask no ones permission to do so.

In this case, we mean someone who would kill other innocent people solely for reasons of personal gain.

No certainty. Life in prison is the only reasonable option to no law.



Because not only is it my freedom, which clearly makes it special for me, but also because so many Americans have died fighting for my freedom. I define that this is important.