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Choose one of the cases below.
How would you respond to the dilemma? Why would you choose this course of action?
What values are coming into conflict in this situation?
You arrive at school one day to find that the building has been defaced. Someone has written mean things about some of the students and teachers in ugly black paint. As you pause to watch as the maintenance staff scrub the front of the building, someone taps you on the shoulder. Your good friend winks and quietly admits to performing this act of vandalism. You shoot your friend a shocked look. Your friend says it was just a joke--after all nobody really got hurt--and if you're a true friend you won't say anything. Do you tell?
Your class has collected money over the course of the year to donate to a local community center for important educational programs in your community. Just before you plan to present the center with the money, a massive earthquake hits India. Hundreds of thousands of people are left homeless. Celebrities and government officials go on TV, urging people to donate funds to help the people of India. Some students in your class want to send the money to India instead of to the community center. This is a huge crisis of epic proportions, they argue, and your contributions can help people survive. What do you think you should do?
Developers have planned a new shopping mall in your town. It will be built on land that is currently undeveloped forestland. The mall will bring many jobs to the town, which has been experiencing economic depression. The mall will also provide entertainment and recreational activities for young people--giving them something to do in their free time and keeping them out of trouble. But local environmentalists are protesting the construction. They argue that the land is home to many species of plants and birds--some endangered. There are few undisturbed natural settings left in the entire region, and they believe this one should be preserved. They suggest the developers build the mall in an industrial area far outside of town--an area very inconvenient for the town's residents.
Kids and teachers in your school are divided. Petitions circulate both advocating for development and supporting the environmental position. Your friends are all signing the petition to keep the mall in town. They pass the pen to you. Do you sign?
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