Batman Should Kill The Joker

He waited until the last couple hours and didn't even bother to write a response, he just linked a Robot Chicken spoof. I'd prefer a real debate. But the main argument posited by the video is that The Joker should die to save lives. This obviously comes from a Utilitarian standpoint, and to refute this for you Utilitarianists, I shall need to provide a Utilitarian response. And I believe that I have already provided the majority of my response in the second round. First, I'd like to harken back to my Slippery Slope argument. Batman could adopt this more Utilitarian code, and this will lead him to kill more and more often. I also discussed the darkness within Bruce Wayne, I have concluded that Bruce Wayne restrains himself from killing because he knows that there is a darkness inside that may lead him to take his killings too far. And this is where the Utilitarian response comes in. Killing The Joker may open a door that will lead him down a path in which he is unnecessarily killing people, and thus providing a negative benefit, in Utilitarian terms of lives saved. One cannot definitely say that Batman's killing The Joker would save lives overall. Secondly, the whole unwavering symbol of hope deal. If Batman starts down this path, he is liable to lose the hope he provides as the symbol that he is[1][2][3]. Perhaps for some of the people that look up to him, his killing The Joker wouldn't be a deal breaker for them, so to speak, but as I have illustrated already, he could head down a worse path, one which cannot be admired by as many. Then the good that he accomplishes as a symbol of hope would be negated. And as you can see in the linked videos, Batman inspires a lot of people to act, and to act for good. He cannot accomplish that if people can't trust him or admire him. Lastly, I'd like to add a new argument. How the police specifically view him. In all the different Batman adaptations, there exist different relationships between Batman and the police, but usually, the fact that he leaves the criminals in their hands makes it harder for them to justify trying to stop him. Just a quick example of Batman's code endearing him to the police[4]. Yes, he's breaking laws, but he is also helping, and at the end of the day, he is leaving the decision of what to do with the criminals he apprehends in the hands of the police. This is important because a police force endeared to Batman will be less likely to try to stop him, and this will do two things, A) Allow Batman to be more effective[5][6]. Instead of wasting time fighting cops, he can simply focus on the criminals. B) It makes him look better in the eyes of more people. If the Batman is a fugitive being hunted by the police, odds are more people in Gotham will be less likely to see him as a hero, and more as a adventure-seeking vigilante. This will only be heightened more as he has to beat up more cops. In conclusion, I rest that Batman is actually more effective from a Utilitarian viewpoint if he refrains from killing The Joker. He inspires more hope, which leads to a safer city. He refrains from going so far down a path of killing that he actually does more harm than good, which is good for the city. He keeps the cops on his side, which makes him more effective and keeps a better public opinion of him, which makes the city safer. Overall, Batman cannot afford to risk tarnishing the symbol that he is. Sources: (Note that 5 and 6 are going on at the same time within the movie) [1]. http://youtu.be... [2] [3] [4] . http://youtu.be... [5] [6]