Why the Lack of Free Will isn’t (only) tied to Naturalism

 determinism, free will, incompatibiism, naturalism  Comments Off on Why the Lack of Free Will isn’t (only) tied to Naturalism
Aug 202014
 

Free Will Illusion Fairy

Naturalism is the belief that nothing exists outside of the natural world.  Many people denote that if naturalism is true (which I believe is the case) that the laws that govern the universe are what make everything happen. That everything which happens in the universe is a physical play out through time. And that means everything single thing, including our conscious thought and decision-making. That these happenings aren’t some magical exceptions to the physics of the universe. In such a natural universe, things such as “free will” just don’t make sense. If our decisions are tied to the physical processes of the universe, then we only have a say in them in so far as the physical processes output what we will say about them. In other words, what we think, feel, say, and do are all an output of how the universe is playing out (both large scale and small scale processes).

And even if we accept that some events don’t have a cause (e.g. certain interpretations of quantum mechanics), those un-caused events are just part of the physical process that we still have no control over.

Though I agree with such analysis for various reasons, I think the incoherence of free will has a much wider reach. In other words, we don’t have to accept a naturalistic worldview to understand that free will doesn’t make any sense what-so-ever.

We just need to understand that an event (something “happening”) must either have a cause (be an output of something that already exists), or not have a cause (just happen – not the output of anything in existence). These are the only two possibilities for events. Not just “naturalistic” events, but any event. A so-called “supernatural” event simply can’t escape this dichotomy. Continue reading »

You don’t “deserve” what you worked hard for! – A philosophical dialogue

 determinism, free will, incompatibiism, indeterminism, misc. philosophy  Comments Off on You don’t “deserve” what you worked hard for! – A philosophical dialogue
Jun 102014
 

What do you mean I don’t deserve what I’ve worked hard for!

I mean you don’t deserve it any more than anyone else.

I worked hard for it. Of course I deserve it.

One doesn’t follow from the other.

Of course it does. Someone who didn’t work for it wouldn’t  deserve it. I did work for it!

They couldn’t have, of their own accord, worked for it, and you couldn’t have not worked for it.

Why couldn’t they have? And why couldn’t I have not?

Because causal events have led them and you to the only possibility. And if there did happen to be another possibility due to non-causal events, those would be entirely out of  theirs and your control anyway. There is no free will.

Fine, let’s assume that’s the case. So?

So basically you are saying that you deserve X quality of life because you worked hard for it, while another person doesn’t deserve X quality of life, because they did not work hard for it (they deserve Y, not X). X being a better quality of life than Y.

You better believe it. I put my hard work, sweat, and time into obtaining X quality of life. If they had as well, they’d deserve X quality of life as well.

But again, they couldn’t have and you couldn’t have not.

Fine, then they couldn’t have X and I couldn’t not have X as well.

That doesn’t mean you deserve X over them. It just means that you have X and they don’t.

What, do you think – I should give them half of X even though they didn’t work for it?

I didn’t say that.

It’s implied in saying I don’t deserve X over them.

No, it’s implied that you don’t deserve X over them, not that you should give them half of X.

Wouldn’t it be unfair for me not to give them half of X if they deserved it just as much as I do? Continue reading »

Free Will – The Mechanism (infographic)

 compatibilism, determinism, incompatibiism, indeterminism, infographic  Comments Off on Free Will – The Mechanism (infographic)
Jun 052014
 

Though I wrote a book arguing against free will, I just came up with the mechanism that allows free will! It’s so simple:

Free_Will_The_Mechanism-INFOGRAPHIC

If you like this infographic please share it around. Educate people on the mechanism that allows free will. First the available options you think about get sucked up and taken to the system which is outside of space and time (of course). They then get thoroughly spun in the contradiction mixer, confusing any contradictory thoughts. Then, of course, they get pulled into a large box of  magic dust where they sit for around a year (though since they are outside of space and time, to willer this happens almost instantaneously).  This magic dusts gives such it’s magical ability. It then goes through the tubes of nonsense and into the logic removal system which strips any need for logical consistency or identity. Then it goes to the free will decision injector which of course injects the freely willed decision back into the physical realm and into the brain of the person. There you have it, the free will mechanism. And since the infographic shows a picture of it, we can say it’s scientifically proven. Why not. 😉

Have fun with this infographic. All I asked is you don’t change it.

And if you really really like this, you might want to check out the shirt with this mechanism on it!

Also, support my efforts and check out the book Breaking the Free Will Illusion for the Betterment of Humankind on Amazon Kindle today!

Thanks,

‘Trick