Ethical Dilemma


Does the last scene in which the deceased physician's wife hands over the records of his research to Luthan present a dilemma to Luthan?

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I don't think so, because all these people would have died for nothing if he wouldn't use the studies already made. It would be a waste. It doesn't mean that Grant himself would need to use human subjects to move forward though.

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I think it did. Yes, HE won't be doing any experiments on humans but he WILL be looking at studies that did so. Should he throw it all in the bin or use it...? I wouldn't want to be given the choice.

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What's the big deal? He can't undo what the other doctor did, but there was progress being made and now there is hope that thousands of people will be able to walk again. I wouldn't think twice about using the info to help people.

What a waste. Oh, the humanity!

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So, because the second doctor was against the test but used the information, he is absolved of all ethical dilemma of the experiments? Does that mean that all inhumane actions are ok if you are 1 degree of separation from the person that did it even though you know that information is ill-gotten gains? If we don't use the information, it does seem that their premature death was in vain; if we do use the information then does that justify the use of all information gained that benefits others that came from horrible atrocities that end in someone else's death and if so will people be more willing to do unethical research if they know it will still be used? I personally don't know I would deal with the research i'd been given.



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What you say in public is what you want people to hear; what you say in private is who you are.

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It is an interesting discussion; I can see both sides of it.

The wife obviously believes that he will do the right thing (considering that she disagreed with her husband's methods), whatever that may be, or else she wouldn't have given him the research.

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It's been done before in the real world, and far worse. You might recall the American government traded the freedom of prisoners guilty of medical warcrimes during WW2 for the data researched at Unit 731.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_Behind_the_Sun




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Another way to look at it is that Luthan may now end up like Gene Hackmans character...


...I am Jack's signature...

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Why would it? He can take the info and go about things the right way this time.

What a waste. Oh, the humanity!

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I don't think it's as big a dilemma as that final scene makes it seem

It's just data; however unethically it was obtained, the data itself is blame-free

Still, the actual dilemma is unlikely to occur in real life -- the number of patients required to validate experimental testing is too high, even if you're using death row inmates or homeless people.

That's why Imperial Japanese and Nazi experiments produced largely useless data in reality. Too few subjects, too few controls, too little science and too much cruelty motivating it all.

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