Reflections about the Film "Can the End justify the Means?"

One would expect utilitarianism to come up with a clear answer on the question whether to build the dam or not. However, it gives raise to many different questions:

- Who should be part of the cost/benefits or maximization of happiness calculus? Human Beings? All sentient beings? Or do other values matter too like biodiversity?

- Do we have to take into consideration just happiness or do other things have intrinsic value as well (like art, love, friendship and wisdom) as ideal/pluralistic utilitarianism suggests?

- Jonathan Glover: We actually do make choices weighing costs and benefits, e.g. when parents decide whether to send one child to a better school or the other to a holiday. However, incertainties remain about the precision and the prognosis

- Utilitarianism gives an account of when a sacrifice of one group of people can be justified, which is one of its harsher aspects. What are the implications of that?

- Utilitarianism can be understood as research project: Long and thorough investigations only will provide an adequate answer (which is the result on the emphasis utilitarians put on the consequences).