FA+
Shop
argumenst for free will that are not religious or cop-outs
7 years ago
General
I am not sure if this is the right place or not for this, but a lot of people here have different viewpoints and/or are very smart.
Is there an argument for free will that is not:
1. religious in nature
2. going to get into the semantics of it to dismiss my worries.
3. going to say there is no point to this as it does not matter.
The issue is one that has bothered me for years. Yes, a lot of articles bring up one or two studies claiming free will is not real, but it is the news on the internet, that once tried to claim that being fat is healthy to get more clicks. And while yes, the one thing that seems constant is that we are always wrong and find new things, it is just one little hope spot.
I am tired of arguments that are religious or written poorly. I am tired of feeling depressed, and the lack of free will is something I think would make some very dark decisions not so dark for me, like I'd be less afraid of doing one thing than the thought of living without free will.
If you are fine without free will, I am glad you are happy, but I am not you. But I am not going to turn away from the truth even if it hurts.
I need a little bit of sleep for now.
Is there an argument for free will that is not:
1. religious in nature
2. going to get into the semantics of it to dismiss my worries.
3. going to say there is no point to this as it does not matter.
The issue is one that has bothered me for years. Yes, a lot of articles bring up one or two studies claiming free will is not real, but it is the news on the internet, that once tried to claim that being fat is healthy to get more clicks. And while yes, the one thing that seems constant is that we are always wrong and find new things, it is just one little hope spot.
I am tired of arguments that are religious or written poorly. I am tired of feeling depressed, and the lack of free will is something I think would make some very dark decisions not so dark for me, like I'd be less afraid of doing one thing than the thought of living without free will.
If you are fine without free will, I am glad you are happy, but I am not you. But I am not going to turn away from the truth even if it hurts.
I need a little bit of sleep for now.
Technically, not having a free will would mean every action would be predestined, but i think that's not true, i think some things are, not all. I can't choose where i am born, i can't choose if i get a genetic disease, and depending on the conditions i have been born under the options for my career may be limited..
But our everyday interactions, if we choose to be kind or harsh to people, if we choose to go left or right is my definition of free will, and so i believe that it does exist.
So all in all, i do think free will exists, but is limited and influenced by several factors
I have been much happier lately, and it feels like this is very mild compared to other low points.
Sometimes, a second opinion is needed, whether it is one agreeing or disagreeing with yours.
But either way, I am glad that we see things differently, or we'd not sometimes come up with good answers. ^^
I am working on not getting thoughts like this, and I will be a better person for you and everyone else. Ocd may encourage me to obsess on thoughts, but I can work it to better things if I try hard enough.
All around the world right now, there are people who are trying to quit smoking, excessive drinking, and drug abuse. That’s not their body, or even their brain telling them to do that. After all, they are addicted. Their brain and body enjoy this substance, and that’s how they got addicted in the first place. But they are quitting regardless because they, themselves, have decided that it would be a good thing to do. It’s not what their body wants, but it’s what they’ve decided to do.
Obviously, we can’t determine everything that happens in our life. Some things are just out of our control.
But everyday, we have a million choices to make.
I just felt like it was best to ask anyone who will answer and hear what they have to say.
Another thing, I don’t even think it even matters if free will exists or not. Just the possibility of its existence makes people take responsibility for their actions and fix things around them, it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. It’s okay to not be a perfect decision maker, there are always ways to make things better if you will it.
If you would make a decision between A and B, there are two option:
With free will: The decision of the Person is still predictable but with a possibility to guess wrong! (a significant error-posibility)
Without free will: The decision of the Person is fuly predictable with a very small window of errors. (no significant error-possibility)
Now jump back to what science says. We are in a stage were we say that we have no free will, but are not able to reliably guess a decision a person will make.
You can find exambles all over the planet: election, politics, lifestyle, etc.
So if science says we have no free will, but in contrast is not able to proof things by Statistics of decision-making, this is just unsignificant blaaa.
We have tastes that serve almost no evolutionary purpose but instead only serve to differentiate how we find enrichment in our lives.
We even have the self-awareness to question if we have free will or not.
I feel like, yes, we do have free will, which we intentionally limit through our values. I *could* go choose to kill someone, which would trigger a chain of events that lead me to become imprisoned and/or killed. I choose not to, not because I fear the consequences of getting caught, but because my values place great value in all human life - even that of a criminal.
Did I choose to limit my choices? Not with strict intention - it's just a natural consequence of being human. But these are values I choose to keep and I choose to see as important.
And I do not think that limiting our free will is bad, though it sounds bad - it's a part of our evolution as a social species that relies on community to thrive. That is what we are - social animals - and what we will always be.