Is 10,000 people suffering identically equal bad as one of them?

[Tiberius]

If that is how you feel, then I can only conclude that you lack the capacity for empathy.

You're caring about all the people who suffer a pinprick more than the person being severely tortured (if there's enough of them), I find that to be much further away from empathy.

No he isn't. You changed your example, thus changing our responses. If people are suffering identical amounts of pain, then the larger group of people should be saved. If the larger group are just suffering pin pricks, whilst one person is getting tortured, then that one person needs saving.

theVOID put it into mathematical formula quite nicely.