This is a course about justice and we begin with a story. Suppose you're the driver of a trolley car, and your trolley car is hurtling down the track at 60 miles an hour.
And at the end of the track you notice five workers working on the track. You try to stop but you can't, your brakes don't work.
You feel desperate because you know that if you crash into these five workers, they will all die. Let's assume you know that for sure.
And so you feel helpless until you notice that there is, off to the right, a side track and at the end of that track, there is one worker working on the track. Your steering wheel works, so you can turn the trolley car, if you want to, onto the side track killing the one but sparing the five.
Here's our first question: what's the right thing to do? What would you do?
Let's take a poll. How many would turn the trolley car onto the side track?
Raise your hands. How many wouldn't? How many would go straight ahead?
Keep your hands up, those of you who would go straight ahead. A handful of people would, the vast majority would turn.
Let's hear first, now we need to begin to investigate the reasons why you think it's the right thing to do. Let's begin with those in the majority who would turn to go onto the side track. Why would you do it?
What would be your reason? Who's willing to volunteer a reason?
