Opening page…
Do we owe anything to people who aren't born yet?
The people who will live with our climate, our debts and our ruins cannot vote, bargain or thank anyone.
Your answer
A little context
You plant a tree in the garden of a house you will probably sell in five years. It will not give real shade for thirty. You do it anyway, and if someone asked whom it was for, you might find the answer surprisingly hard to give.
Nearby questions
- Does nature matter for its own sake?Picture a forest that vanishes without a single person or animal ever noticing or suffering.
- Is it wrong to eat animals?The animal on your plate could feel pain and fear. If you had to kill it yourself, you would find out what you really think.
- Can a deal be unfair if both sides agree to it?A desperate person accepts poverty wages, or sells a kidney, because every other option is worse. They chose it, and it may still be exploitation.
- The coin flipTwo drivers leave the same party equally drunk. A child runs into the road in front of one, who kills the child; the other gets home without hurting anyone. Do they deserve different blame?
- Do the ends justify the means?Sometimes the only way to stop something terrible is to do something terrible yourself. Even then, your hands are not quite clean.
