Philosophers have long disagreed about whether it’s acceptable to harm one person in order to help or save several people. Utilitarianism is the philosophical school that says you should always aim to bring about the greatest total good, even if a few people get hurt along the way, so if there’s really no other way to save those five lives, go ahea

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Broadly, political conservatives place greater emphasis on the last three, even when they might infringe to some extent on the first two, while those of a more liberal persuasion are more likely to baulk at any such infringement. For them, protection of the weak and a deep sense of fairness trump patriotism and deference to authority, for example.

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