[MichaelZuo]

If a broke drunk driver knocks a packed school bus off a cliff, that could easily be 600 million dollars worth of medical bills, if all the kids survive but become permanently disabled. And nearly all of it would have to be covered in the end by the taxpayer.

No ‘side quest’ needed, just a few seconds worth of bad decision making.

[keepamovin]

Right, but conceivably rarer (thermodynamically, in terms of ratio of possible microstates/ensembles) than ships hittin bridges!

So, doesn't really compare. Yours is more of a hypothetical, mine's more of a reality. Haha! :)

[RobotToaster]

The more disturbing part is, it would be less expensive if they all died.

[lotsofpulp]

How is that disturbing? It takes far fewer hours of labor to deal with a death than to provide lifelong healthcare.

[RobotToaster]

Because it creates a potential financial incentive to make sure they die.

[lotsofpulp]

The same incentive is there even if money did not exist. Providing services to someone (who is likely to be unable provide equivalent value in return) is more costly than not providing them. That is simply reality/math?