I think that this thought experiment mixes two different situations: helping when you are in unique position to help for almost free – and helping in fungible situations where many can help many but for cost.
This actually results into underestimation of the value of unique help. A few times I reminded a taxi driver about a pedestrian ahead—and such type of help is not fungible and didn’t cost me anything.
So training people to perform unique help may be very effective: eg how to perform CPR, swim etc.
Yup, like so many thought experiments, it’s intended to restrict all the real-world options in order to focus on the intuition conflict between “once” and “commonly”. One of the reasons I’m not a Utilitarian is that I don’t think most values are anywhere near linear, and simple scaling (shut up and multiply) just doesn’t resonate with me.
If the “hero for hire” is a lifeguard or swimming instructor, we have LOTS of examples of communities or occasionally rich individuals deciding to provide that. The difference that the thought experiment fails to make clear is one of timeframe and (as you point out) uniqueness of YOUR ability to help.
I think that this thought experiment mixes two different situations: helping when you are in unique position to help for almost free – and helping in fungible situations where many can help many but for cost.
This actually results into underestimation of the value of unique help. A few times I reminded a taxi driver about a pedestrian ahead—and such type of help is not fungible and didn’t cost me anything.
So training people to perform unique help may be very effective: eg how to perform CPR, swim etc.
Yup, like so many thought experiments, it’s intended to restrict all the real-world options in order to focus on the intuition conflict between “once” and “commonly”. One of the reasons I’m not a Utilitarian is that I don’t think most values are anywhere near linear, and simple scaling (shut up and multiply) just doesn’t resonate with me.
If the “hero for hire” is a lifeguard or swimming instructor, we have LOTS of examples of communities or occasionally rich individuals deciding to provide that. The difference that the thought experiment fails to make clear is one of timeframe and (as you point out) uniqueness of YOUR ability to help.