Hard to say what anyone would do if actually put into a situation like that. Most people would like to think that they would, at least for family and friends.
That being said, it depends. For family, I'd like to think that I would. For friends, I'm not sure I am that good of friends with anybody. I mean if they were in a very clear situation like getting attacked or something then yeah, but if they needed both of my kidneys or something to keep living then probably not. The specific situations could get very contrived but basically it is highly dependent on the situation and the person. For "my country", that is debatable. If we were actively being invaded or something, then it would most likely end up affecting myself, friends and family as well, so the answer would probably be yes. Going over to the Middle East to help break up terrorist organizations? If I really thoughtI I would make a significant difference then yeah, maybe. A war like Vietnam though? Doubtful. Regardless of what side of the fence you are on about it, the Vietcong *were* pretty nasty. Helping the South Vietnamese seemed like a somewhat noble thing to do, but I mean, how many people are willing to put themselves in a scenario where they are sacrificing their lives total and complete strangers half-way across the world? I could go over to <insert war-torn country here> and offer myself up as a sacrifice to help some random stranger over there, but in my opinion, someone so willing to jump right in and give up their life for someone they don't even know (and might end up being only slightly better off even after) doesn't seem to value their *own* life that much. If you were really dedicated to making the world a better place/whatever, I would think in the vast majority of situations that you would be able to contribute much more through an entire lifetime than a handful of daring or suicidal acts of bravery.
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