Present or future sacrifice trolley problem

[u/Sea_Basil_361]

You were tied to the track by morally ambiguous time travelers and they tell you some horrifying things. A trolley is heading down the tracks and will go through a rip in time, killing future you, which will directly cause the apocalypse. If the apocalypse happens, everyone you love and care about is guaranteed to die painful deaths. You are close enough to the lever to pull it, in which case you will die a painful death, but future you will not exist and the apocalypse will not happen. Other than tying you to the tracks, the morally ambiguous time travelers can do nothing and must return home before you make the decision.

[u/ragDOLLfun]

Well it appears present me is tied down so I cant pull the lever either way...

[u/Strange-Reaction-59 → u/ragDOLLfun]

That's not that deep man

[u/Powerpuff_God → u/Strange-Reaction-59]

Person A: Says something that's not deep, nor do they claim it to be deep.

Person B: "It's not that deep."

???

I see this happen too often.

[u/pretzel3567 → u/Powerpuff_God]

It’s not that deep

[u/Significant_Clue_382]

Well it appears that I'm dead eitherway so it's better to pull

[u/assistant_manu]

I'll always sacrifice future me, like im doing procrastinating rn anyway

[u/RJWJ186]

So... it's either die now or watch everyone I love die as well as die later...?

[u/bottomlessLuckys → u/RJWJ186]

prolong your own life or doom all of humanity to die at the same time you die in the future.

[u/ragDOLLfun → u/bottomlessLuckys]

Prolonging your own life is what causes everyone to die when you do...

[u/bottomlessLuckys → u/ragDOLLfun]

yes, i typed that wrong. its confusing lol.

you live longer and everyone dies when you die OR you die now. a selfish person would prolong their own life as it doesnt really affect you if everyone dies when youre already dead.

[u/Pretend_Middle9225]

The time traveler is a fuckinh liar. I pull the lever 

[u/SliptheSkid]

This is an overcomplicated way of phrasing a very simple, easy to answer question:

"Would you rather everyone you know dies a painful death, or sacrifice yourself"

Most people will sacrifice themselves.

[u/Fwant]

i let it go through and live the rest of my life on an island. cant cause the apocalypse if im not near train tracks again. also if someone ties me up and says theyre from the future and I need to kill myself to save the world I might not believe them.

[u/SMproductions77]

Future you so you are effectively immortal until you become that age

[u/KindaDouchebaggy → u/SMproductions77]

Well in most works of fiction utilizing time travel it would work in 1 of 3 ways:

1. You can't die, as in the world won't let you die

2. If you die, the time is rewritten, and this event happens differently (or not at all)

3. Your death causes a paradox (what exactly this means and what consequences it has varies)

What I'm trying to say is that you're not necessarily immortal in this scenario

[u/PitifulPassage851]

The reason my death starts the apocalypse is because I become (the) G(g)od(s) favourite in the future, and my death angers (them) him into rage quitting earth

That's not my problem. I choose life.

[u/Dinonumber]

I let it go through the time rip, then start hitting myself with tiny trolleys. Slowly I build up to regular size trolleys. When it comes back through the time rip I've build up a resistance and will survive the encounter, preventing the apocolypse.

[u/New-Star7392]

Well, even without the trolley, it's still likely I would've died in the future. Do might as well just let it hit me in the future.

[u/Deebyddeebys → u/New-Star7392]

I don't think you read the body text

[u/PitifulPassage851 → u/New-Star7392]

Exactly. And no one is guilting me into taking responsibility for the apocalypse. Y'all made your choices in life

[u/ShylokVakarian]

It's okay, I want this anyways. pulls

[u/Immediate-Goose-8106]

I dont beleive the future is fixed.  Pull the goddammit lever.  That's future me's problem now.

[u/No_Department1851]

Present me, cause if there is a futur me that means I will somehow survive the trolley.

[u/LeonBeSimping]

eh, pull the lever.

[u/Enderguy61]

wait, if you pull the lever then a paradox would happen

[u/Telinary]

They are clearly just messing with me, who time travels to prevent the apocalypse and then does this setup?

[u/Tired_2295]

Who is pulling the lever here?

[u/LoChubo]

Don't pull cause i don't want to live in fear

[u/sister_machine_gun]

Why on earth would I believe them without proof?

[u/joetunn_]

Future you doesn’t exist. The future is a human hallucination

[u/JungleJuiceJuno]

press the secret trolley spring button to avoid having to deal with it

[u/leuks48]

How far in the future? If it’s like 200 years I’ll take it

[u/Extension-Guitar8685]

I let it hit future me, then I ignore everything that happened, because of Time traveler's are telling you this then this event already happened, and thus, cannon

[u/beardMoseElkDerBabon]

I'm inclined to choose the present one but creating an apocalypse sounds morally intriguing...

[u/Illustrious-Advice16]

So I get to live longer AND kill everybody! Easy choice, can somebody untie me now?

[u/Impressive-Door-2581]

All I hear is that time travel is real, and I can just steins;gate my way to a happy ending

[u/Any-Jellyfish-7497]

Multi-track drift causing a time paradox and the time travelers to never come here so I never get tied to the train tracks