Give This a Thought

A group of children are playing near two railway tracks, one still in use

while the other disused. Only one child is playing on the disused

track, the rest on the operational track. The train comes, and you are

just beside the track interchange. You could make the train change its

course to the disused track and save most of the kids. However, that

would also mean the lone child playing by the disused track would be

sacrificed; or would you rather let the train go its way?

Let's take a pause to think what kind of decision we could make.

Most people might choose to divert the course of the train, and

sacrifice only one child.

You might think the same way, I guess.

Exactly, I thought the same way initially because to save most of the

children at the expense of only one child was rational decision most

people would make, morally and emotionally. But, have you ever

thought that the child choosing to play on the disused track had in fact

made the right decision to play at a safe place?

Nevertheless, he had to be sacrificed because of his ignorant friends

who chose to play where the danger was.

This kind of dilemma happens around us everyday. In the office,

community, in politics and especially in a democratic society, the

minority is often sacrificed for the interest of the majority, no matter

how foolish or ignorant the majority are, and how farsighted and

knowledgeable the minority are.

The child who chose not to play with the rest on the operational track

was sidelined. And in the case he was sacrificed, no one would shed

a tear for him.

The friend who forwarded me the story said he would not try to

change the course of the train because he believed that the

kids playing on the operational track should have known very well

that track was still in use, and that they should have run away if

they heard the train's sirens. If the train was diverted, that lone child

would definitely die because he never thought the train could come

over to that track!

While we are all aware that life is full of tough decisions that

need to be made, we may not realize that hasty decisions may

not always be the right one.