Would you donate a kidney to a stranger?
Published by Jake Allen March 5th, 2006 in UncategorizedWould you donate a kidney to a stranger?
Consider that the stranger is not elderly, not a felon or misfit . . . even the same gender and race/culture as you; consider the recipient as lacking any prejudice or liabilities, but not a family member, just a stranger who approached you through appropriate means. Consider that you would be reasonably (not generously) compensated for lost work.
Would you donate a kidney to a stranger?
Madness?
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jake - to state the provisions that you do (not a felon, not elderly, etc.) contradicts the question. The person is no longer a stranger, and you are evaluating them based on some preconceived criteria of who is/is not “worthy” of your kidney. Perhaps a better question is, “would you donate a kidney to someone who needed it without knowing anything other than that well-established fact about them?”
For me, while I hope that I would not hesitate to donate a kidney to family, etc., I feel that the possible negative consequences of surgery might adversely affect my wife and family, and, at that, would probably not for a “stranger.” However, at a later point in my life, after kids are provided for, etc., I hope that I would answer this question differently.
peace.
by the way - this comment was orignally rejected for the use of the word o.r.g.a.n ha!
Sorry, the comment blocker is pretty strict, but you should see some of the spam I get! Well, actually you shouldn’t. Yikes!
I suppose that there is some logical inconsistencies in the question, but I was using the term “stranger” loosely. With the provisions, I wanted to make it easier for people to say yes to non-family without the complication of some of the complaints that organ donation often has, such as felons on the donor lists ahead of children, for example.
Your revised question is probably ethically more relevant. One of your or my kidneys could fail or be damaged in an accident: would you take that risk for a stranger?
Your family-first answer is what I expect from most people. Thanks for jumping in!