Torture Museum

[Infected Mushroom]

Please consider the following Black Mirror inspired hypothetical:

A mass murderer has been executed.

However, an all-powerful god takes their consciousness and re-inserts it into a new special body. They are forced to exist in all of perpetuity.

The god then opens a torture museum in a supernatural realm. You can pay 100 dollars for 5 minutes inside the realm. Once inside, you can see the mass murderer trapped inside a box. You are invited to pull a lever which will administer various degrees of electrical shocks, thus torturing the killer. If you apply a high enough voltage, you can kill them.

While you do so, you can hear the killer scream and/or plead.

The murderer is resurrected if they ever get killed. Any mental and physical damage they get from the shock also recuperates at a supernatural rate.

Please assume that there is no feasible way to oppose the will of this all-powerful god or to interrupt/destroy the torture museum.

The all-powerful god has announced that this torture museum will open tomorrow and he has explained how you can give your 100 dollars to him if you want a turn.

Please assume that the all-powerful god will take infallible and effective steps to protect you from the legal and social ramifications of using the torture museum.

Please assume that the mass murderer is well-known and tons and tons of people have expressed their outrage at their crimes.

...

Now OF COURSE no one on NSG would pay 100 dollars to do this, because everyone here is nice (...right?).

The same can't be said about the world as a whole though.

What I want to discuss instead is this:

Keeping in mind all of the assumptions of the hypothetical, and based on what you know/assume about human nature... what percentage of the world's teenage to adult population do you think would try the museum AT LEAST ONCE... 10 percent? 25? 50? 75? 100?

I would say the percentage would be close to 75 percent. This world is a very dark place and if given the chance (with complete protection from legal and social ramifications by the god), curiosity and sadism will over-rule a good portion of the people. Human nature in its most fundamental form, is not a pretty thing. There are exceptions of course, but a large percentage of the world's people are monsters in disguise.

[Pacomia]

Eh, if the murderer had harmed me or my family/friends personally, I have to admit that I might have a go at the museum.

[Geneviev]

Some people would do this, but definitely no more than 10 percent. People are generally much better than this.

[Bluelight-R006]

I’d say that the percentage of people would be close to 25. Most I’ll give is 35%.

Everyone loves justice, but some wouldn’t want to spend such a high (yes, believe it) amount of money. Not everyone has the time. And it’ll get boring after an amount of time. Personally, I wouldn’t go, because I’d want to spend my money elsewhere, and not on something I’d forget after some time.

[Bombadil]

You'd have to discount all the people who can't afford $100, I suspect that would wipe out a good 60-70% alone.

[The Alma Mater]

Some people would do this, but definitely no more than 10 percent. People are generally much better than this.

On the contrary, it will become a standard subsidised schooltrip. Especially for christian schools.

[Pacomia]

I’d say that the percentage of people would be close to 25. Most I’ll give is 35%.

Everyone loves justice, but some wouldn’t want to spend such a high (yes, believe it) amount of money. And it’ll get boring after an amount of time. Personally, I wouldn’t go, because I’d want to spend my money elsewhere, and not on something I’d forget after some time.

You would forget torturing a person?

[The Alma Mater]

You'd have to discount all the people who can't afford $100, I suspect that would wipe out a good 60 alone.

A very valid point. Sadly.

[Geneviev]

Some people would do this, but definitely no more than 10 percent. People are generally much better than this.

On the contrary, it will become a standard subsidised schooltrip. Especially for christian schools.

Why for Christian schools?

[Jean-Paul Sartre]

I would never support this, though I suspect most Christians and Muslims would have no problem with it. A situation similar to this awaits all non-believers in their afterlife. Tertullian even suggested a version of this (looking down on those poor souls) would be one of the pleasures awaiting believers in heaven.

Regardless, I think most people would. Forget teens, adults would in similar numbers—they just wouldn’t admit it.

[Foxfound]

I don't know how many people would do it, but I do know I wouldn't do it. I wouldn't take any pleasure in it, and in my opinion no person, no matter what they've done, deserves this.

[Infected Mushroom]

You'd have to discount all the people who can't afford $100, I suspect that would wipe out a good 60-70% alone.

You'd be surprised.

The people who are struggling to make ends meet may be the ones with the MOST ANGER to vent. They might scrap the money together and do it at all cost.

[Washington Resistance Army]

I question the motivations of an all-powerful god that decides to do such things.

[Bluelight-R006]

I’d say that the percentage of people would be close to 25. Most I’ll give is 35%.

Everyone loves justice, but some wouldn’t want to spend such a high (yes, believe it) amount of money. And it’ll get boring after an amount of time. Personally, I wouldn’t go, because I’d want to spend my money elsewhere, and not on something I’d forget after some time.

You would forget torturing a person?

I wouldn’t go to it, i’d forget the whole thing. Just like many of other murder cases. Plus I wouldn’t want to stoop to as low as the murderer itself.

[Foxfound]

Another thought: How do we know this isn't a test by the god to see how many of us would act as barbaric as the murderer if we thought there were no consequences?

[Bombadil]

You'd have to discount all the people who can't afford $100, I suspect that would wipe out a good 60-70% alone.

You'd be surprised.

The people who are struggling to make ends meet may be the ones with the MOST ANGER to vent. They might scrap the money together and do it at all cost.

Some 70% of the world's population lives on less than $10 a day, I really don't think this is anywhere on their priority list. Of the remainder who do I suspect it would be a pretty small amount of people. The Milgram experiment was about authority not propensity and nearly all subjects exhibited high levels of stress and discomfort.

[Bombadil]

I question the motivations of an all-powerful god that decides to do such things.

Yeah, like that one that goes 'worship me or spend eternity in hell'.

[Jean-Paul Sartre]

I question the motivations of an all-powerful god that decides to do such things.

Yeah, like that one that goes 'worship me or spend eternity in hell'.

But he *loves* you

[Bluelight-R006]

Another thought: How do we know this isn't a test by the god to see how many of us would act as barbaric as the murderer if we thought there were no consequences?

Interesting theory. I despise murderers, yet I wouldn’t want to be like one.

[Pacomia]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

[Geneviev]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

I'm just assuming he didn't kill my family or friends.

[Washington Resistance Army]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

Torture is little more than meaningless sadism, imo. It won't bring back anyone I've loved.

Plus I could buy a bunch of movies or some books for $100.

[Bombadil]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

Regardless, you're still getting a tiny percentage of people applicable, even if you take genocide and for each person killed have ten willing to do this, you're still getting a tiny percentage of the global population.

[Bluelight-R006]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

It’s not your fault to vent your anger into that person. But I’d suggest you take a second to compare what you’re doing to the murderer. Life is valuable—everyone should appreciate theirs and others, so with that principle in mind, I’d say to ignore the murderer. After all, you’d be stopping down to his/her level.

[Pacomia]

I seem to be the only one willing to admit I might actually do this if the mustered had killed one of my family/friends. Am I just the only horrible person, or are y’all just unwilling to admit it?

Torture is little more than meaningless sadism, imo. It won't bring back anyone I've loved.

Plus I could buy a bunch of movies or some books for $100.

Ok but r e v e n g e

I probably don’t have the $100 anyway.