the lifeboat theory

Question

you are now on 2 weeks cruise holiday with your friends. The ship carries 3,000 passengers and people enjoy their 2weeks on board with nice meals at several restaurants, shopping on shopping floors, watching playing at theater, exercising in the swimming pool and a number of parties and events the cruise company organizes. On your 8th day on board, the disaster happened. A fire broke out in the ship and fireworks on the basement were caught. Immediately the explosion occurred and the emergency bell alarmed. The ship began to sink and people got in panic, dashing to the deck where they can get lifeboat. Fortunately you were standing at the gate when the accidents happened, so you could get the lifeboat immediately. Now your lifeboat is away from the ship with 11 people and you are helping the sailor to get some more people from the sea. The capacity of this lifeboat is 20 people but you can still see many people screaming and asking help around the lifeboat. Now you see your friend is swimming toward to the boat. The boat seems to be full.

Answer the questions:

Q1. Facing the danger of capsizing the boat, what is your duty?

Q2.Compare the ethical duties you have to save your friend as compared to other people?

Q3.Will there be any criteria for you to decide who to get on the lifeboat from the sea?

Q4. What would be the most ethical behavior(s) in this situation?

Q5. Do you this it is possible to be ethical in this situation?

Answer 1

3 errors in these kinds of 'before the fact' moral hypotheticals.

1) The BIG danger is not the capacity of the raft but the fact that any raft within range will sink when the shlp goes down as that creates a huge suction.

2) SOmebody on the raft must have authority presumably and he makes the call, which is what authority means. You have no chance of 11 people holding a meeting to decide. Presumably most on the raft have no experience with this or knowledge about it. You don't want to be like the Mom on the plane that puts the oxygen on the baby first and then passes out herself to the detriment of that baby.

3) This is maybe too practical but if the person can swim but the boat and he should keep swimming till the danger of being near the sinking boat's suction is dealt with.