A poll by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion recently asked U.S. residents which superpower they would most like to have. 28 percent said they would like to have the ability to read people’s minds, the same proportion that said they would prefer the ability to time travel.
There is no question about it: reading minds is by far the most unethical power on the list. In fact, there is nothing ethical about reading minds, which is a violation of individual privacy and autonomy, disrespectful, unfair, and primarily useful for unethical purposes, like manipulating the behavior of others. It is an inherent violation of the Golden Rule, and uses other human beings for the mindreader’s benefit.
The fact that so many Americans would choose this power (the other options, other than time travel, were flying, invisibility, and the ability to teleport) is an indication, I think, of declining trust and trustworthiness, increasing suspicion and fear, selfishness, and a callous disregard for the rights of others. No wonder time travel is the co-favorite. People want to go back to a time when we could trust each other.
Ethics Alarms 
I think you’re reaching.
First, the very act of asking about “superpowers” pre-supposes a recognition of a fantasy element. More to the point, any such power can be used for good or ill: I could time-travel to destroy evidence of my crime, use my invisibility to sneak into the girls’ shower-room, teleport away from the police.
The same logic applies to real powers like, say, Constitutional rights. I can apply freedom of speech to opposing a bill I consider unjust, or to label its proponent a Nazi. I can use the right to bear arms to protect my family or to more easily commit murder. And so on.
My first thought at contemplating the ability to mind-read was how wonderful it would be if I really knew whether my students had grasped a difficult concept, or if they were simply too shy, too polite, or too embarrassed to say otherwise. I’m reasonably good at my job, so I’ve learned most of the “tells,” but it would be a great benefit to me and to them to be sure of my ground. It would be nice to know, too, if that implausible excuse one of them is offering just might be true. The fact that I could conceivably abuse such an ability does not make the power itself or my interest in having it inherently unethical.
I sure wouldn’t want such a power all the time–the cacaphony of petty slights would be impossible to bear–but the ability to turn it on for 5 seconds a day and to limit its scope to a specific question… yeah, sign me up.
And I don’t think that makes me unethical.
Oh, no doubt I was reaching. It’s still interesting: I don’t think, as a rule, ethical people want to do unethical things. MORAL people often do, but they are bound by rules they won’t break. I genuinely am alarmed that so many of us have no strong respect for autonomy and privacy. It’s as if 25% of the public said they would like to have a slave—you know, just in theory. Really? I don’t think ethical people would want a slave, and ethical people shouldn’t be interested in reading people’s minds, either.
What this survey really shows is the lack of science education in America.
I would certainly NEVER choose the ability to time-travel unless I ALSO had the ability to teleport.
Otherwise I would be limited to traveling forward or back no more than a few microseconds, lest I find myself somewhere in the uncomfortable vacuum of outer space.
–Dwayne
Like.
I think the ability to time travel would then, in itself, imply that you could wind up wherever you wanted, making it that you could do both.
Jack,
Except that the respondents all knew they weren’t, by virtue of their vote, going to be granted such powers, which makes the results meaningless. That’d be akin to me asking, “If you were going to kill you boss, how would you do it?” People can’t be called unethical for desiring impossible things, else all fantasies would be utterly abhorrent. Wishing I had the power to compel women to sleep with me, or get revenge against my enemies in a fantasy doesn’t mean I’d actually do so if I were somehow given the ability .. it’s just a way to kill time.
-Neil
PS: Does it make me unethical if I say “With an axe?”
Thoughts and wishes indeed aren’t unethical. Answering a poll isn’t unethical. But I also don’t think ethical people want to do unethical things. This kind of thing is why Don Rumsfeld always refused to answer hypotheticals.
“Thoughts and wishes…aren’t unethical.” Brings to mind the old Catholic jape: young man goes to confession, doesn’t know quite what to confess, asks priest for suggestions.
PRIEST: So, son, are you bothered by impure thoughts?
KID: Oh no, Father, I enjoy them thoroughly!
PPS: I would think “Time Travel” would have the most potential for unethical use considering you’d presumably have the ability to erase people from existence or, at the very least, affect their destiny in some way. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d rather people always know what I’m thinking than never have had the chance to think in the first place.
All the powers can be used unethically, but that doesn’t make them unethical per se. Reading anyone’s mind without consent is by definition unethical.
What if you asked permission so that you could explore repressed memories that they can’t even access and provide therapy to the root cause of their emotional psyche?
Good! That’s an ethical use of an inherently unethical power. There will almost always be those.
Also, the power (if we are going off of Charles Xavier as an example, since you used his picture) can be used to communicate telepathically. When fighting in battles, being able to communicate with your allies to coordinate your defense or attack would be very useful and not the least unethical.
Your post supposed the power was limited to a What Women Want implementation. I suppose that if you consider a power like Mel Gibson’s, your post would be spot on.
But then again, the poll was about “Superhero” Mind Reading. Not “Crappy Date Movie” Mind Reading.