Posts by libris@donphan.social
(DIR) Post #Ak5f3rNo3I7x5vn1cW by libris@donphan.social
2024-07-19T13:52:57Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@Radical_EgoCom I accept determinism in physics, although, as has been mentioned by others, quantum effects add complexity to it.But on a human scale, determinism challenges the idea of free will, and that is not a useful way to look at the world. Even if the world is strictly deterministic, the human experience is not. We cannot let the sense that we have no control over our circumstances and our actions keep us from trying to be better people and lead better lives.
(DIR) Post #Ak5gYpj2Mfygsw3MxM by libris@donphan.social
2024-07-19T14:09:19Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@Radical_EgoCom Because we make conscious choices. It doesn't matter whether our choices are predetermined; we still need to make them. Free will may or may not be fundamentally “real,” but it is something we experience. You could call it an emergent property of self-awareness.
(DIR) Post #Ak6JyNOQDu8Wkra7IO by libris@donphan.social
2024-07-19T21:30:22Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@Radical_EgoCom That's not what I'm arguing. I'm arguing that determinism is not a *useful* way to talk about everyday human experience. It doesn't matter whether free will exists or not, we *experience* free will. Determinism can lead to people disregarding the weight of their choices and actions; it can serve as a scapegoat when we cause negative outcomes. The philosophical debate is interesting, but it does not—and should not—affect how we make our choices.
(DIR) Post #Ak6TcS3dCNO4OQ2bWS by libris@donphan.social
2024-07-19T23:19:32Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@Radical_EgoCom I think you've misunderstood me again.1. I said “determinism can cause” as a shorthand for “believing in determinism can.” I thought that was clear, but I'm sorry if it wasn't.2. I said “can,” not “does”; that is, it is possible to use determinism as a scapegoat. If you don't, that's great, but I've heard determinism used as an argument that “our choices don't matter,” which I find counterproductive. 3. I'm sure determinism can be an effective tool in retrospective analysis, seeing circumstances as causes and choices as effects. But to me, that is like analyzing the human body as a bag of chemicals: true and helpful in specific circumstances, but not generally useful in describing the human experience.