When Humanity Fails Kill Zombie Great Aunt Sally

The Governor brushing his zombified daughter's hair

        The soft classical music plays in the background.. a piano. The Governor is sitting on a chair in what looks to be a living room with. It's a close up of his face, calm, collected, and concentrating greatly on something. The cameras zoom out and you see that the Governor is brushing what appears to be a little girl's hair who is sitting between his legs on the floor. The music plays on with each and every stroke of the brush through her hair. Until a piece of hair is ripped out along with some skin. A throaty "GRAWR!" escapes the child's mouth. The little girl grabs the Governor's arm with her bloody hands and that's when you finally see her face. She's a zombie. She's lashing out. The Governor tries to restrain her then puts a cloth bag over her head. When she's finally somewhat calm he tells her, "Hey! Daddy still loves you!" Holding the child, the Governor looks outside his window only to see Micchone staring up at him. That's when the scene ends.

This scene is from AMCs hit television show "The Walking Dead." It's a series about survivors living in the after math of the zombie apocalypse. They struggle to overcome the day to day challenges that come with the zombie apocalypse as they fight to save humanity. They try their best to survive and live through this devastating disaster. It's a very interesting and thrilling show.

Micchone getting ready to kill the zombie child

What I find greatly interesting about the scene above is that the governor who built this town against the zombies on the outside is actually hoarding one of his own enemies. Not only that but this zombie child is actually his daughter who he kept after she turned. The Governor is playing God by keeping her alive. Is that even ETHICAL? Although it seems tough to kill a significant other in a zombie apocalypse.. It should be done if that person becomes a zombie. It HAS to be done. That person that you loved so much is not even that person anymore once they become a zombie. They become creatures of evil.. creatures of DEATH. Da da da daaaaaa! IF you don't shoot it in the head then it will kill you. SO think about it.. Do you want to die or would you rather kill to survive? In a zombie apocalypse it's a dog eats dog world. The general rule for survival in a situation like this is: KILL OR BE KILLED. So what is it? 

To an utilitarian killing one person to save more is acceptable. In a zombie apocalypse you need to maximize utility. Again Zombies don't count as human beings anymore. They are the living dead and therefore do not have a value. Yes the Kantians can object to this but let me explain why zombies do not count as our equals...

Great Aunt Sally. Scary huh?

1. What do zombies do? That is RIGHT! They want to eat our flesh.
2. Do zombies even think? Do zombies use logic? Or even think rationally? No. They solely rely on animalistic instincts to "live"
3. A zombie wears the shell of what once was a person, once was your brother or sister. Once that person turns every rational thought, all that logic, and all the emotions from that person leave that body. It's pure basic animal instinct. Eat to survive.
As humans we are equals. As humans verses zombies we are unequal especially if one of those is feasting on the other.
From an utilitarian perspective by killing one zombie you are stopping it from making more zombies! The governor should have killed the zombie girl long ago! Too bad Micchone gets to her before the governor can. Anyways it's survival of the fittest.. You know Darwin's classic natural selection at its finest.
      

Me, Keisha, and our epic staches

So is it ETHICAL to kill your lover.. your best friend.. your family member.. your great aunt Sally?! Yeah that's right your great aunt Sally the one you absolutely hate.. The one you probably would have "accidentally" killed anyways if given the chance to. OOOPS! Spilled the beans! *evil chuckle* It is OKAY to kill if it was between your life or the zombie's life. It is absolutely positively OKAY to kill a zombie EVEN if it was your great aunt Sally. A zombie is not a person anymore. A zombie is a capsule of animalistic instincts.. GRAWRRRR! EAT FLESH! 

My favorite brother, Alex

I've got to say that if my best friend Keisha and my favorite brother alex became zombies……… I'd kill 'em. BUT by then they probably would have already committed suicide before they turned. Being a zombie sucks!! You feast on other human beings but you don't care.. you're a zombie! My beloved best friend, Keisha can be the one to turn me into a zombie. She wouldn't care because she's not herself anymore. *Sniffles* I can't remember how many times Alex and I talked about the zombie apocalypse or Keisha and I. Yes we are weirdos although Alex won't admit to it. We discuss these things although the chances of them happening are low. You need something to tickle your fancy every now and then. Anyways they both decided that if they were bitten they'd want to die. It is then ethical to kill them because they want to die. IT IS! We discussed this in Professor Salazar's ethics class one day.. the nine exceptions that make killing somewhat okay. As hard as it is to kill someone who once was so important in your life if it is for your survival you should accept it and do it.

References:

Salazar, Heather.“Kantian Business Ethics,” in Business in Ethical Focus, ed. Fritz Allhoff and Anand J. Vaidya. Broadview Press, 2008