Would you press the button? Would you even think about it?
Theyre going to execute an innocent man, not for the first time, but this time he’s comically innocent. He’s so innocent I feel like this is a joke on me. He’s so innocent, I feel like I’m being Truman Show’d. How absurd to execute him.
You can read people’s thoughts about it if you like. You can read about the innocence project. You can read about the governors power to do whatever. You can read about the Supreme Court. No one is writing about you.
Would you press the button? When they execute him, there will be a moment when the executioner or executioners initiate the process by which he will be murdered. Those people will be murderers by definition. For all the discussion, no one is saying “maybe don’t press the button”.
Don’t press the button.
What’s the point of doing experiments where we test whether or not people will administer shocks? You would murder an innocent man because a judge told you to. I know, because you’ve done it before. Don’t do it. What will happen to you if you do not press the button? Will you be executed yourself? Will you get in trouble? Will you lose your job? I guess those are the reasons to murder someone.
Why press the button? What is the point of pressing the button? Who wins when you press the button?
Do you believe you have to press the button?
Pressing the button is their job. It’s their job. The worst that can happen if they don’t murder that man is they lose their job. They’d rather murder that man than lose their job.
There’s your experiment.
If you’re a human being, don’t press the button.
Jordan Holmes is an author and podcaster. You can listen to him two times a week on the Knowledge Fight podcast, and read his book and other musings here.
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