Dilemma 8/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You loose your right foot.
2. You loose your left foot.

Dilemma 8/6/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You save the life of someone who turns into a serial killer.
2. You accidentally kill someone who would have turned into a serial killer.

Dilemma 8/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You loose your voice.
2. You loose your hearing.

Dilemma 8/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You agree never to see your family again in exchange for their getting a million dollars.
2. You agree never to see your family again in exchange for your being healthy the rest of your life.

Dilemma 8/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are struggling financially and must choose between paying for food and paying for housing.
2. You struggling financially and must choose between paying for food and paying for medicine that prevents you from being in chronic pain.

Dilemma 8/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your partner forgets all the good things that ever happened to him or her.
2. Your partner forgets everything that ever happened to him or her.

Dilemma 8/1/09

Sorry for the unintended hiatuses, but as you all know, life happens. I may try to "catch up" with June and July, but I don't want to make rash promises...

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You forget all the good things that happened to you.
2. You forget everything that ever happened to you.

Dilemma 7/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Fireworks are banned because they are too dangerous.
2. Barbecue grills are banned because they are too dangerous.

Dilemma 6/20/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You have to choose between something you believe in and a person you love.
2. You have to choose between two people you love.

Dilemma 6/19/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Airplanes cease flying.
2. Cars stop working.

Dilemma 6/18/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?
1. An alien virus wipes out most of the life on Earth.
2. A virus from Earth wipes out most of the life on an alien planet.

Dilemma 6/17/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A drug you take for a long-term, life-threatening condition makes you extremely irritable and moody.
2. A drug you take for a long-term, life-threatening condition makes you extremely apathetic and disconnected.

Dilemma 6/16/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Climate change turns your country into a desert.
2. Climate change turns your country into a swamp.

Dilemma 6/15/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Human clones are developed so that the original person's brain can be transplanted into a younger body.
2. Human embryos are developed and harvested for stem cells that prevent aging.

Dilemma 6/14/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are in a coma for six years.
2. You are put in suspend animation for two hundred years.

Dilemma 6/13/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You develop a condition where you will repeat every thought you think out loud.
2. Your partner develops a condition where he or she says every thought he or she thinks out loud.

Dilemma 6/12/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You help a stranger who then takes advantage of you and cheats you.
2. You refuse to help a stranger who then severely suffers without the help.

Dilemma 6/11/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose all your money.
2. You develop chronic health problems.

Dilemma 6/10/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You know the exact time and date your death will occur.
2. You know the exact time and date the death of a loved one will occur.

Dilemma 6/9/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. As electronic communications increase, people lose the ability to communicate face to face.
2. All forms of electronic communications stop working.

Dilemma 6/8/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You have no money.
2. You have no friends.

Dilemma 6/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are the last person left on Earth.
2. You are the first and only person to live on a new planet.

Dilemma 6/6/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You always look young, but age rapidly.
2. You always look old, but age very slowly.

Dilemma 6/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Innocent foreigners suspected of terrorism are tortured for information on possible attacks in your country.
2. Innocent locals suspected of terrorism are tortured for information on possible attacks in your home town.

Dilemma 6/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1 You discover that your partner is wanted for murder, and you call the police to report him or her.
2. You discover that your partner is wanted for murder, and because of your love, you help him or her escape the police.

Dilemma 6/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Dogs become extinct.
2. Cats become extinct.

Dilemma 6/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You disappoint a friend.
2. You disappoint yourself.

Dilemma 6/1/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are an unknown carrier of a deadly contagious disease.
2. Your family contracts a deadly contagious disease.

Dilemma 5/31/09

And.... we're back!

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A boat is sinking, and you must choose which eight of the ten adult passengers will get in the lifeboat.
2. A boat is sinking, and you must choose which eight of the ten child passengers will get in the lifeboat.

Dilemma-Free week

Sorry for the lack of dilemmas this week. There's just a little too much going on elsewhere in my life this month. I think it would be better for me to just take a week off instead of trying to catch up yet again... so look for the next Dilemma on May 31st.

Dilemma 5/23/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are president of your country, and you agree to start a war to prevent an international catastrophe.
2. You are president of your country, and you agree to a secret operation to overthrow a government that is unfriendly to your country.

Dilemma 5/22/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are unable to remember what words mean.
2. Your partner is unable to remember faces.

Dilemma 5/21/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Because of pollution from a nearby factory, the majority of babies in your neighborhood are born with a severe birth defects.
2. Due to a widespread industrial catastrophe, the majority of the babies in a foreign country are born with severe birth defects.

Dilemma 5/20/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A virus wipes out all the trees in your area.
2. A virus wipes out all the birds in your area.

Dilemma 5/19/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your property is vandalized, and you have reason to believe your best friend's child is responsible.
2. Your best friend's property is vandalized, and you have reason to believe your child is responsible.

Dilemma 5/18/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are stuck on a deserted island with your worst enemy.
2. You help your worst enemy to succeed in a plan that ultimately harms you.

Dilemma 5/17/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You deliberately break a very important promise to your child.
2. You deliberately break a very important promise to your partner.

Dilemma 5/16/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You accidentally break a very important promise to your child.
2. You accidentally break a very important promise to your partner.

Dilemma 5/15/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your child loses his or her toes.
2. Your partner loses his or her thumbs.

Dilemma 5/14/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose your toes.
2. You lose your thumbs.

Dilemma 5/13/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A garbage dump is built right next to your home.
2. A maximum security prison is built in your home town.

Dilemma 5/12/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The Amazon rainforest becomes a desert.
2. The massive farmland areas in your country become a desert.

Dilemma 5/11/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You torture someone in the hope of getting the information you need to prevent thirty deaths.
2. You refuse to torture someone, and ten people die because you did not get the information to save them.

Dilemma 5/10/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You have twenty children.
2. You have fifty cats.

Dilemma 5/9/08

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your only source of food is restaurant leftovers and garbage.
2. Your only source of water is a muddy pond.

Dilemma 5/8/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The government mandates the use of public transportation, and bans the personal ownership of all gasoline-powered vehicles.
2. The government bans washers and dryers because they use too much energy.

Dilemma 5/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Humans land on another planet, and the bacteria they bring with them wipes out all native life.
2. A meteorite releases alien bacteria on Earth that cause a disease pandemic.

Dilemma 5/6/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You become immortal, but no one else does.
2. Your child becomes immortal, but no one else does.

Dilemma 5/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are unable to read words.
2. You are unable to work with numbers.

Dilemma 5/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A "violent" gene is discovered, and people who have it are isolated from society at birth.
2. A "genius" gene is discovered, and only people who have it can get advanced schooling.

Dilemma 5/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The government bans ice cream because it is bad for you.
2. The government mandates all citizens should eat brussel sprouts at least twice a week because they are good for you.

Dilemma 5/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. People become so fearful of encountering violence that almost all interactions they have with other people are virtual.
2. A "violence" gene is identified, and all people who have the gene are isolated and only permitted to interact virtually with other people.

Dilemma 5/1/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The government enacts very strict birth control laws to slow the population growth of your country.
2. Overpopulation of your country leads to famine, disease epidemics, and a high death rate.

Dilemma 4/30/09

Self-knowledge
is a dangerous thing
and can't be granted
by a single vision.

--Craig Erick Chaffin


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are able to see disasters that will happen in the future, but you cannot do anything that will change the outcomes.
2. You have realistic dreams, some of which predict the future, but you never know until after events unfold which dreams are predictive.

Dilemma 4/29/09

So early it's still almost dark out.
I'm near the window with coffee,
and the usual early morning stuff
that passes for thought.

--Raymond Carver


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Coffee plants die out.
2. The government bans soft drinks for health reasons.

Dilemma 4/28/09

And when the eve is born,
In the blue lake the sky, o'er-reaching far,
Is hollowed out and the moon dips her horn,
And twinkles many a star.

--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The sky becomes completely and permanently covered by clouds.
2. Most of the trees on Earth die for an unknown reason.

Dilemma 4/27/09

. . . . Looking for
signs to quiet fear, I creep
closer to his bed and hear
his breath come and go, holding
my own as if my own were
all I paid. Nothing I bring,
say, or do has meaning here.

--Philip Levine


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A very contagious flu affects most of the people in your neighborhood.
2. A very contagious flu affects most of the people in another country.

Dilemma 4/26/09

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore--
And then run?

--Langston Hughes


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You know for certain that you will never achieve any of your dreams.
2. You know for certain that someone you love dearly will never achieve any of his or her dreams.

Dilemma 4/25/09

Imagine if your precious nose
were sandwiched in between your toes,
that clearly would not be a treat,
for you'd be forced to smell your feet.

--Jack Prelutsky


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your sense of smell becomes so sensitive that everything that has a smell bothers you.
2. Your sense of hearing becomes so sensitive that every sound you hear bothers you.

Dilemma 4/24/09

Changed? Yes, I will confess it – I have changed.
I do not love you in the old fond way.

--Ella Wheeler Wilcox


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The entire world population suddenly becomes female.
2. The only babies born in the world are male.

Dilemma 4/23/09

When that I was and a little tiny boy,
With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,
A foolish thing was but a toy,
For the rain it raineth every day..

--William Shakespeare (Happy Birthday, Will!)


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Someone goes back in time and prevents Shakespeare from being born.
2. Someone goes back in time and prevents your closest friend from being born.

Dilemma 4/22/09

"O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?"
But answer came there none-
And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.

--Lewis Carroll


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Several deep sea fish species go extinct due to overfishing.
2. The government bans all types of fishing.

Dilemma 4/21/09

I never saw a Purple Cow,
I never hope to see one,
But I can tell you, anyhow,
I'd rather see than be one!

--Gelett Burgess


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. An experiment in genetic manipulation turns you into a purple cow.
2. An experiment in genetic manipulation turns you into a purple human-cow hybrid.

Dilemma 4/20/09

Ours is a freedom of hope
a spiritual grounding in our birth
the belief we shared, and still do today
Shaken from our yoke of slavery
so long as we don’t put on a new one

--Raymond A. Foss


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You die fighting against oppression.
2. You give up all your freedom and privacy in order to stay alive.

Dilemma 4/19/09

Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses
your understanding.

Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its
heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain.

--Khalil Gibran


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You spend the rest of your life in chronic pain.
2. Your closest loved one spends the rest of his or her life in chronic pain.

Dilemma 4/18/09

Life, friends, is boring. We must not say so.
After all, the sky flashes, the great sea yearns,
we ourselves flash and yearn

--John Berryman


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You spend the rest of your life in a empty room with nothing to do.
2. You spend the rest of your life bouncing from crisis to crisis with no downtime.

Dilemma 4/17/09

Torture will give a dozen pence or more
To keep a drab from bawling at his door.
The public taste is quite a different thing-
Torture is positively paid to sing.

--Hilaire Belloc


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are forced to torture a good friend to his or her breaking point.
2. You are tortured to your breaking point.

Dilemma 4/16/09

Over the dead line we have called to you
To come across with a word to us,
Some beaten whisper of what happens
Where you are over the dead line
Deaf to our calls and voiceless.

--Carl Sandburg


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your child is brain dead, and you agree to turn off the life support system.
2. Your parent is brain dead, and although you know it is against your parent's stated wishes, you keep your parent on life support.

Dilemma 4/15/09

We talk of taxes, and I call you friend;
Well, such you are,—but well enough we know
How thick about us root, how rankly grow
Those subtle weeds no man has need to tend

--Edna St. Vincent Millay


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You find yourself in serious legal trouble over a mistake you made on your taxes.
2. An innocent friend is in serious legal trouble over taxes due to an untraceable mistake made by the government.

Dilemma 4/14/09

Ah, fill the Cup: -- what boots it to repeat
How Time is slipping underneath our Feet:
Unborn To-morrow, and dead Yesterday,
Why fret about them if To-day be sweet!

--Omar Khayyam


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are unable to remember anything that happened before each current day.
2. You are unable to forget anything.

Dilemma 4/13/09

Who am I, too, that I am not on trial, or in prison?
Me, ruthless and devilish as any, that my wrists are not chain’d with iron, or my
ankles
with
iron?

--Walt Whitman


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A major injustice is perpetrated because no one speaks up.
2. An innocent person is destroyed by the false rumor that she is guilty of a major injustice.

Dilemma 4/12/09

Leaning against a wormy poppy-head,
So wan and worn that he could scarcely stand,
--For he was soon to die,--he softly said,
"Tell me you love me!"--holding hard her hand.

--Thomas Hardy


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You tell a self-destructive lie to someone to prevent them from physically harming themselves.
2. You tell a self-destructive lie to someone to minimize their emotional pain.

Dilemma 4/11/09

In the leaves that are crinkled and curled
Are his ashes of glory,
And what once were an end of the world
Is an end of a story.

--Edwin Arlington Robinson


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The government mandates which books people can and cannot read.
2. A national group of religious leaders mandate which books people can and cannot read.

Dilemma 4/10/09

And would you learn the spells that drowse my soul?
Work without Hope draws nectar in a sieve,
And Hope without an object cannot live.

--Samuel Taylor Coleridge

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You work in a mindless factory job that you hate.
2. You work in a high-pressure, high-stakes job that you hate.

Dilemma 4/9/09

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

--William Shakespeare

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your partner has a long-term affair.
2. Your partner has a sex change operation.

Dilemma 4/8/09

My Life had stood -- a Loaded Gun --
In Corners -- till a Day
The Owner passed -- identified --
And carried Me away --

--Emily Dickinson


You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A friend with a history of anger issues buys a gun.
2. A friend with a history of depression buys a gun.

Dilemma 4/7/09

They went to sea in a Sieve, they did,
In a Sieve they went to sea:
In spite of all their friends could say,
On a winter's morn, on a stormy day,
In a Sieve they went to sea!

--Edward Lear

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A medical researcher working on a cure for AIDS disappears at sea.
2. An inventor working on a completely renewable, cheap energy source disappears at sea.

Dilemma 4/6/09

Yesterday, upon the stair
I saw a man who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
I wish, I wish, he’d go away.

--William Mearns

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A time traveler goes back in time and prevents World War II and the Holocaust.
2. A time traveler goes back in time and prevents you from being born.

Dilemma 4/5/09

hate blows a bubble of despair into
hugeness world system universe and bang
-fear buries a tomorrow under woe
and up comes yesterday most green and young

--e. e. cummings

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The world is consumed by hatred.
2. The world is consumed by fear.

Dilemma 4/4/09

Up the airy mountain
Down the rushy glen,
We daren't go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;

--William Allingham

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Two little girls in your neighborhood disappear and are never found.
2. The government mandates that all children under the age of 18 get GPS tracking implants.

Dilemma 4/3/09

When we’ve fought the battle bravely and are beaten to the wall,
’Tis the sneers of men, not conscience, that make cowards of us all;
And the while you are returning, oh! your brain is on the rack,
And your heart is in the shadow of the shame of going back.

--Henry Lawson

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. An unemployed man commits suicide.
2. A failed company's CEO commits suicide.

Dilemma 4/2/09

April is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.

--T. S. Eliot

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Lilacs that are bioengineered to glow in the dark accidentally crossbreed with normal lilacs until there are almost no normal lilac plants left.
2. Potatoes that are bioengineered to produce an important vaccine accidentally crossbreed with normal potatoes until there are almost no normal potatoes left.

Dilemma 4/1/09

Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. --Robert Frost

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A freak scientific accident triggers a runaway ice age, destroying all life on Earth and turning the world into an uninhabitable ball of ice
2. A freak scientific accident triggers runaway global warming, destroying all life on Earth and turning the world into an uninhabitable inferno.

Dilemma 3/31/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The only copy of an invention that would ensure world peace, and all its related documentation, are destroyed in a fire.
2. A newly discovered medical serum that would ultimately lead to immortality, and all its related documentation, are destroyed in a fire.

Dilemma 3/30/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You have to kill your own food to eat.
2. You can only eat flavorless synthetic food.

Dilemma 3/29/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You accidentally kill someone.
2. You deliberately kill someone in self-defense.

Dilemma 3/28/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are kept in a sensory overload room for a week.
2. You are kept in a sensory deprivation tank for a week.

Dilemma 3/27/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Someone secretly makes a baby using your egg or sperm.
2. Someone secretly clones you.

Dilemma 3/26/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your partner develops a severe chronic physical problem.
2. Your partner develops a severe chronic mental problem.

Dilemma 3/25/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your skin turns bright green.
2. Your skin turns bright orange.

Dilemma 3/24/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You find conclusive proof that a supreme deity exists.
2. You find conclusive proof that a supreme deity does not exist.

Dilemma 3/23/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are unable to communicate with anyone outside your immediate family.
2. You are unable to communicate with anyone who is a member of your immediate family.

Dilemma 3/22/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Humans become the slaves of an alien race.
2. Our current infrastructure is destroyed by an alien race.

Dilemma 3/21/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your favorite vacation spot is paved over and turned into a mega-mall.
2. You are no longer able to go on vacations outside of your home town.

Dilemma 3/20/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You get a job requires you to work 10 hours a day, seven days a week.
2. Your partner gets a job that requires your partner work 10 hours a day, seven days a week.

Dilemma 3/19/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You develop permanent, chronic insomnia.
2. You develop a permanent, chronic cold.

Dilemma 3/18/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. An experimental vehicle that runs on air is prevented from reaching the market because there is a 1% chance it will explode in a low-impact accident.
2. A car company decides not to issue a recall for a flaw that has a small chance of causing deaths because the cost of the recall would probably be higher than the cost of the lawsuits that would result.

Dilemma 3/17/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A doctor gives up a career that would have included finding a cure for a deadly disease in order to be a stay-at-home parent.
2. A doctor gives up a career that would have included saving the life of an important world leader in order to be a caregiver for aging parents.

Dilemma 3/16/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You discover that your ten year old child smokes cigarettes.
2. You discover that your ten year old child drinks alcohol.

Dilemma 3/15/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios*. Which would you prevent?

1. A strip joint opens in your neighborhood.
2. A Wal-Mart opens in your neighborhood.


*These scenarios courtesy of Eden.

Dilemma 3/14/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A friend walks out too far on a frozen lake and falls through.
2. A friend is swimming alone at a beach and becomes caught in a rip current.

Dilemma 3/13/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your parent dies.
2. Your child dies.

Dilemma 3/12/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You betray a core value to help someone you love.
2. You lose your relationship with someone you love when you adhere to a core value.

Dilemma 3/11/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your emotional needs are being met, but your physical needs are not.
2. Your physical needs are being met, but your emotional needs are not.

Dilemma 3/10/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose an important memory, but do not realize you have lost it.
2. You lose an important memory, but do realize you have lost it.

Dilemma 3/9/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The country is plunged into a civil war.
2. The country is plunged into an international war.

Dilemma 3/8/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Scientists successfully clone Genghis Khan.
2. Scientists successfully clone Julius Caesar.

Dilemma 3/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are imprisoned in pleasant place for life.
2. You are imprisoned in a hellish place, but know you will eventually get out of it.

Dilemma 3/6/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are in a situation where you have to decide whether to save the life of a friend or the life of your friend's child.
2. You are in a situation where you have to decide whether to save the life of a friend or your own life.

Dilemma 3/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your government stops funding education.
2. Your government stops funding security services.

Dilemma 3/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The government bans coffee because of its negative health effects.
2. The government bans donuts because of their negative health effects.

Dilemma 3/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Anybody can legally own and carry a gun.
2. Everybody legally owns and carries a gun.

Dilemma 3/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Advertisers start projecting ads into the night sky.
2. Billboard ads include cameras that track your eye movements and customize the ads accordingly.

Dilemma 3/1/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are trapped on a desert island with a lion.
2. You are trapped on a desert island with a rhinoceros.

Dilemma 2/28/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Fish are genetically modified to glow in the presence of certain pollutants.
2. Corn is genetically modified to contain easily extractable antibiotics.

Dilemma 2/27/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Human embryos are genetically manipulated to have certain traits (e.g., sex, specific eye or hair color) before they are implanted.
2. People cannot have children unless they get a parenting license.

Dilemma 2/26/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your partner becomes verbally abusive.
2. Your partner becomes physically abusive.

Dilemma 2/25/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose the ability to read.
2. A close relative becomes paralyzed.

Dilemma 2/24/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your email and internet chat programs stop working.
2. Your telephone stops working.

Dilemma 2/23/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The politician you most admire is involved in a serious illegal activity which is publicly exposed and punished.
2. The politician you least admire is involved in a serious illegal activity which is never exposed or punished.

Dilemma 2/22/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your favorite movie star is badly injured during filming.
2. Your favorite movie star's stunt double is badly injured during filming.

Dilemma 2/21/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. All automobiles suddenly stop working.
2. Television and the internet suddenly stop working.

Dilemma 2/20/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose your income.
2. You lose the ability to read.

Dilemma 2/19/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your local climate changes and you end up with blizzards six months out of the year.
2. Your local climate changes and you end up with drought and extremely hot temperatures six months out of the year.

Dilemma 2/18/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are stranded on a desert island with your least favorite politician.
2. You are stranded on a desert island with no books.

Dilemma 2/17/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose the ability to read.
2. You lose the ability to talk.

Dilemma 2/16/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A fertility clinic loses its supply of frozen embryos.
2. A fertility clinic loses its supply of donated egg and sperm.

Dilemma 2/15/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your pet disappears one day and never reappears.
2. Your pet has a stroke and becomes permanently incapacitated.

Dilemma 2/14/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You have a heart transplant.
2. Your closest loved one has a heart transplant.

Dilemma 2/13/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You can always hear what other people are thinking.
2. Other people can always hear what you are thinking.

Dilemma 2/12/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A full school bus crashes.
2. A full tour bus crashes.

Dilemma 2/11/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are late for an interview that could get you the job of your dreams.
2. Your child gets a bad case of the flu.

Dilemma 2/10/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A neighbor steals a thousand dollars from you and skips town with your money.
2. You lend a thousand dollars to a neighbor for what you think is an emergency situation. You find out later that the neighbor has lied and has skipped town with your money.

Dilemma 2/9/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. In our effort to explore Mars, we accidentally wipe out any microbial life it might have.
2. The first human colony on Mars is wiped out by an undiscovered Martian virus.

Dilemma 2/8/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are stranded in the wilderness with nothing to eat except cockroaches.
2. You are stranded in the wilderness with nothing to eat except worms.

Dilemma 2/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A child dies of cancer after the parents refuse medical treatment for religious reasons.
2. A child dies of cancer after prolonged and difficult medical treatments fail.

Dilemma 2/6/09

Ah, the difference a word makes.... Here is how I originally intended yesterday's dilemma to go, which will be today's dilemma:

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Human-animal hybrid cloning is successful.
2. Extinct animal cloning is not successful.

(And, for the intrigued, attempts at both of these things recently made the science news circuit. The extinct ibex baby managed to live for a few minutes. The human-animal hybrid clones proved unsuccessful. So far.)

Dilemma 2/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Human-animal hybrid cloning is successful.
2. Extinct animal cloning is successful.

Dilemma 2/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Iran builds nuclear weapons.
2. Afghanistan builds nuclear weapons.

Dilemma 2/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A doctor on the verge of curing cancer dies.
2. A young child in a refugee camp dies.

Dilemma 2/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A dozen wild monkeys are used for medical testing.
2. A dozen wild monkeys are put in a small zoo.

Dilemma 2/1/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. All of Shakespeare's works vanish from the world.
2. All of your favorite author's works vanish from the world.

Dilemma 1/31/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A child is born with a serious birth defect.
2. A teenager develops a terminal disease.

Dilemma 1/30/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A woman pregnant with twins dies.
2. A mother and her two young children die.

Dilemma 1/29/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The library in your town closes for good.
2. Your favorite TV show is canceled.

Dilemma 1/28/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The oldest business in your town closes for good.
2. The oldest inhabitant of your town dies.

Dilemma 1/27/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A paroled sex offender moves into your neighborhood.
2. A paroled murderer moves into your neighborhood.

Dilemma 1/26/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your child hangs out with people that you think are very dangerous.
2. Your child participates in activities that you think are very dangerous.

Dilemma 1/25/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A maximum security prison is built in your neighborhood.
2. A nuclear power plant is built in your neighborhood.

Dilemma 1/24/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Bananas die out.
2. Oranges die out.

Dilemma 1/23/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You break the news to a good friend that he is being fired for poor job performance.
2. You break the news to a good friend that his partner is having an affair.

Dilemma 1/22/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A close male relative is arrested in a foreign country for drug possession.
2. A close female relative is arrested in a foreign country for drug possession.

Dilemma 1/21/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Music vanishes from the world.
2. Stories vanish from the world.

Inaugural Day Dilemma

Bonus Dilemma:

Your puppy eats your Inaugural Ceremony ticket.

What happens to your puppy?

Dilemma 1/20/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You become permanently celibate.
2. Your partner becomes permanently celibate.

Dilemma 1/19/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The local library bans your favorite book.
2. The local school district bans your favorite book.

Dilemma 1/18/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Whales go extinct.
2. Elephants go extinct.

Dilemma 1/17/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You accidentally hit a deer with your car, killing it.
2. You accidentally hit a dog with your car, killing it.

Dilemma 1/16/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose all internet access for two months.
2. Your entire town loses electricity for a week.

Dilemma 1/15/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. All of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is opened to unrestricted oil drilling.
   
2. There is a massive oil spill off the Alaskan coast.

Dilemma 1/14/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Two friends lose their jobs.
   
2. Your favorite local store goes out of business.
   

Dilemma 1/13/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You lose your sense of taste.
   
2. You lose your sense of smell.
   

Dilemma 1/12/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A tree falls on your neighbor's roof.
2. A tree falls on your car.
   

Dilemma 1/11/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your closest loved one loses an arm.
   
2. You lose a leg.
   

Dilemma 1/10/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. The polar ice caps melt.
   
2. Gas goes to and stays at $15 gallon.
   

Dilemma 1/9/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You agree to take care of a friend's pet snake, and feed the snake a live mouse. You stay and watch the snake eat it.
   
2. You are visiting a farm in a foreign country. Your host serves you fresh cow brains from one of the farm's cows, which you eat.
   

Dilemma 1/8/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. You are arrested for a crime you didn't commit and spend several years in jail.
   
2. A stranger is arrested for a crime she didn't commit, and spends the rest of her life in jail.

Dilemma 1/7/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Polar bears become extinct.
   
2. An undiscovered plant species in the Amazon rainforest becomes extinct.
   

Dilemma 1/6/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A good friend is convicted of a crime he didn't commit, and is sentenced to a few days in jail and community service.
   
2. A stranger is convicted of a crime he didn't commit, and is sentenced to several years in jail.
   

Dilemma 1/5/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your favorite park is turned into a highrise development.
   
2. Your favorite historical building is torn down.
   

Dilemma 1/4/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A young mother of three dies from cancer.
2. Three homeless men die from the extreme cold.

Dilemma 1/3/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. An earthquake kills thousands of people in South America.
2. A psychopath kills dozens of people at your local shopping mall.
   

Dilemma 1/2/09

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. Your favorite movie star drives drunk and dies in a car accident that involves no other people.
2. Your closest loved one breaks a leg and an arm.

Dilemma 1/1/09

Welcome to a new year and a new blog concept. Please read the rules (see link to the side) before commenting. Thanks!

You have the magical power to stop one and only one of the following two scenarios. Which would you prevent?

1. A drunk driver you don't know dies in a car accident that involves no other people.
2. You break your leg and your arm.