What's an individual life worth?

Question

Really, we may like to talk up the value of an individual, but come on, there's six billion of us.
Not that I'm advocating suicide, but if a person is miserable, and they try to get better, but it doesn't take, why make that person suffer by staying alive? for them?
also, if we have a murderer, why should he be kept alive at the expense of the taxpayers, to never be reformed, never be free again, never produce anything, just consume food and take up space.
this "everyone has value" is a really new, and pretty "western" concept.

Answer 1

my take on it is that there is all this suffering in this world for a reason. everything else in this world is practical, so pain and all the negative things we have to experience life must be too. In my opinion there's a balance of pain and beauty in this world, and it's an exchange. the beauty and good times is what makes all the pain worth it. In this world, each person has as much of a value as they allow themselves to have. If they dont want to live, dont make them. Different people are born with that balance in different places, but every single one has the ability to get to a place in life where they dont have to experience too much pain or negative experiences.

Answer 2

See I think each of us comes here for a specific reason and I think that we carefully pick the time we come, so as to meet up with who we want to learn with and have the right circumstances in history, etc. I think that so much goes into the planning and it is virtually impossible to duplicate those circumstances again. So when an individual is killed in an untimely fashion I think that is a tragedy - and a senseless waste of time and energy.

Having said that, I do think that we should all have a kill switch (and end game button, as it were) so that we can get out of a situation that has gone out of control. I mean, isn't it also a senseless waste of energy to plod through life unhappy and not striving to learn or grow?

I don't think god cares much if we come home early or not - though I think that those coming after us (who felt like they had a commitment from you that you would be there) will be sorely disappointed (or not even get a chance to exist).

Answer 3

As a Christian, and not just a religious one, I believe very strongly in the death penalty, truth in sentencing, and making laws be for non-moral issues and the church for moral issues. That's why we had separation of state and church. It's when the two tried to join hands that chaos began to occur within our "western" mindset and from there as they say, "the rest is history." That's not to say life doesn't have value, it's to say that life does have value and that it should be respected - there was a time when the rights of any person was to be available to earn a living by his own work, provide his own shelter, and clothing, and food. Then we decided we should have these naturally given rights no matter who, what, or where we had been or what we had done in our lives, so all of a sudden, Mr. and Mrs. Working Hard America, became the sole supporters for those who either wouldn't pull their own, or were locked up and had better access to the luxuries of "westernization" than the working class. Then we taught our children that they had more rights than we did as their parents. So an individuals life only became as valuable as the rights he could gain for himself and that is sad, because our life should be as valuable as Christ made it - valuable enough he died to save our souls.

Answer 4

Without truth it is meaningless. If you run out of outward resources, then ask Truth it's self to reveal it's self to you. You will be surprised when the blinders come off and you realize that
everything that means everything has been hidden from you, not because it is invisible, but because you were looking for it where it isn't. Even if a moment ago was a useless moment, it does not dictate the future unless you let it. If you are stuck in yesterdays and tomorrows, then I am sure you are not even considering the needs of the NOW moment. Check it out, right dead in the center of the "O", If you look close you will discover another Universe. In that Universe there is plenty to do to keep your thoughts off of the mundane. "Peace"

Answer 5

What'll you give me?
I think it's closer to 7 billion people. Anywhoo, if some want to commit suicide, I would rather try to help them find happiness.
As far as criminals jailed for life, I agree, why keep them around?
Cut the cost, and take their life.
Although some don't think only God has the right to take a life the BIble actually says human courts do have the right to do so. Romans:13
1 Let every soul be in subjection to the superior authorities, for there is no authority except by God; the existing authorities stand placed in their relative positions by God. 2 Therefore he who opposes the authority has taken a stand against the arrangement of God; those who have taken a stand against it will receive judgment to themselves. 3 For those ruling are an object of fear, not to the good deed, but to the bad. Do you, then, want to have no fear of the authority? Keep doing good, and you will have praise from it; 4 for it is God’s minister to you for your good. But if you are doing what is bad, be in fear: for it is not without purpose that it bears the sword; for it is God’s minister, an avenger to express wrath upon the one practicing what is bad.

Answer 6

dust from dust and dust to dust is not a dead phenomena.Wether the whole human race commits suicide or an individual commits suicide will make no difference in totality.However you are under constant watch and judged by the consciousness hidden in the particles of matter which brought you in to being, is sustaining you and will dissolve you. No prevailing human concepts are sufficient to reveal you the ultimate truth.It is possible only through a very pious and pure love-bond with the COSMOS. Become a COMEAS and you will see what others till date could not even conceive with their minds. [e-mail]

Answer 7

It is because as a human you have a loyalty to this world. You have a responsibility to love it enough to make it better.

A person who commits suicide is one of the greatest enemies of mankind. Not only did he not love himself enough, but he didn't care at all for anyone else. He deprives us of the good work he could accomplish.

The worst enemy of mankind is that which convinces man to kill himself.

And you provide your opinion as fact when you say that the inherent dignity and value of a human being is a new concept. I question whether you have even read any pieces of ancient literature. You know my opinion? My opinion is that you watch a lot of Britney Spears on MTV, surf the net for games and other wastes of time, then settle down for your six hour lineup on television. And through this experience you formulate opinions and judge them as true.

Your philosophy is unrefined and definitely uneducated. You just are too ignorant of the wealth of literature to even recognize it.

Answer 8

What would it profit a man if he gained the wealth
of the whole world and lost his soul?

God Sent his Only Begotten Son and his son
gave his life so we could be saved.I don't think
there is enough numbers in the universe to make
a price of our worth to God.
In Christ in Love,
TJ57

Answer 9

The 'value' of life is a purely subjective thing. It is defined by our emotional connection to life.

Life has no real value, we place moral value on it based on how it makes us feel to see life direspected. (Well most of us do)

And that we value it is probably a good thing. For us anyway.

Answer 10

there isnt a single human being that is not important in this world , every life has value, in fact if u know someone who committed suicide[which i do] then nothing brings home that fact more than that. remember every person has somebody who loves them dearly it doesnt matter who they are, they are someones child