# Would you take a serious risk with your families future because of a hunch? Also, you otherwise die. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 10, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679 "2010-06-10T17:42:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/1 "2010-06-10T17:42:33Z")
Kinda hard to fit this into a title. Let’s say you have terminal cancer. Your only hope is spontaneous remission. You have the belief that this is only possible under some unknowable placebo like effect, which in any case is unlikely to happen, but the only way it **may** happen is if you act as though there’s no possibility of you dying. So you don’t get your affairs in order. You stop paying for life insurance. You have no treatment at all. Obviously if this fails that’s gonna fuck your family up a lot when you die. But it’s your only chance of survival. What you think? ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/2 "2010-06-10T17:47:54Z")
Not a chance. It’s one thing to take a chance with my life, which is already at risk, but there is no way I’m risking my families future. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/3 "2010-06-10T17:49:59Z")
NFW. It’s risking way too much for way too little. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/4 "2010-06-10T21:09:55Z")
Doing what the OP suggests is irresponsible, stupid, and callous. ---
**Author:** ![Gustav](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/919ad9/32.png) [@Gustav](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gustav)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/5 "2010-06-10T21:16:10Z")
A completely baseless hunch? Absolutely not, complete no-brainer. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/6 "2010-06-10T21:51:59Z")
I fail to act on profound hunches every day, sometimes several times a day. Why should this situation be any different? ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/7 "2010-06-10T22:17:00Z")
If I had any dependents, there’s no way I’d do that. Especially the life insurance. However much time I have left is only going to cost a few dollars in premiums, and when I kick off, as the overwhelming odds suggest I will, my beneficiaries will have, if not financial security at least a safety buffer. Likewise, I’d put my affairs in order. Update the will, locate my DD 214 so they’ll have no hassles getting the VA to spring for the casket flag I’ve earned, arranging for loved ones and especially little ones to be out of town when I pull the trigger, so my body will be discovered by professionals, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/8 "2010-06-10T22:19:56Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > If I had any dependents, there’s no way I’d do that. Especially the life insurance. However much time I have left is only going to cost a few dollars in premiums, and when I kick off, as the overwhelming odds suggest I will, my beneficiaries will have, if not financial security at least a safety buffer. Likewise, I’d put my affairs in order. Update the will, locate my DD 214 so they’ll have no hassles getting the VA to spring for the casket flag I’ve earned, arranging for loved ones and especially little ones to be out of town when I pull the trigger, so my body will be discovered by professionals, etc. :mad: Sorry, Oak. Against the rules. If you wish to end your life to avoid the pain of cancer, you must take out at least one (1) murderer or rapist at the same time. Valhalla and all that. ---
**Author:** ![Carmady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f04885/32.png) [@Carmady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carmady)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/9 "2010-06-10T22:43:20Z")
I would get my affairs in order and keep paying for life insurance with the plan of faking my own death and collecting. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/10 "2010-06-11T00:34:52Z")
I disagree that paying for life insurance means that you’re not “act[ing] as though there’s no possibility of you dying.” I have zero plans for a car accident, but that doesn’t mean that I’ll stop paying for car insurance (aside from it being compulsory and all). ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-take-a-serious-risk-with-your-families-future-because-of-a-hunch-also-you-otherwise-die/542679/11 "2010-06-11T00:59:14Z")
If I was going to put my faith in a placebo effect, it would be for something a lot more creative than ‘pretend you’re not going to die.’ It would at the very least involve regular massages, and possibly visiting every planetarium in the lower 48 in alphabetical order. “. . . act as though there’s no possibility of you dying . . ?” Pfft! I’d never get me to believe that.