“permissible” and “higher utility than the alternative” are two very different things. Shooting one person at a bus stop is higher utility than shooting four, but that doesn’t make it permissible, because you should shoot zero people. Pure utilitarianism says you should always do the best thing, and that means higher utility than all alternatives, not just some alternatives.
“permissible” and “higher utility than the alternative” are two very different things. Shooting one person at a bus stop is higher utility than shooting four, but that doesn’t make it permissible, because you should shoot zero people. Pure utilitarianism says you should always do the best thing, and that means higher utility than all alternatives, not just some alternatives.