[ExI] Free Will vs. Determinism

[citta437 at aol.com]

Kevin: "I think one mistake to make on this question is to suppose that 
it's a
metaphysical (or, in some contexts, religious) question.  The problem of
free will isn't going to be solved by armchair speculation.  Rather, 
it's a
scientific question: the question being, how do we explain human 
volition?
It's a problem of neuroscience and what we need is a lot research in 
how the
brain works.
________

Its not a scientific question but a mistake in thinking that free will 
exist.

Kevin: "But, we can at least define the problem.  At any moment, we can 
conceive
multiple courses of action that we can take, yet we only actually 
*take* one
of them.  What determines our chosen course of action?"
___________

Genes determine one's nature/behavior in response to environmental 
stimuli. It determines the brain structure, the color of your skin, 
eyes and your sex from birth. Religion invented the idea of free will 
to factor in ideas of sin and immorality. It is a thought on top of 
thoughts.

Kevin: "is our volition or will that determines our course of action 
really isn't
sufficient, because volition isn't a clear and distinct idea.  Rather, 
it is
at best a placeholder for an explanation: it's a word we use to signify 
an
explanation that is missing.  The free will problem can be summed up as 
the
question: what exactly is the will?"
____________

"Will" denotes some state of being in the future. The problem is who 
knows what the future Is? If no one knows the future, why cling to the 
thought of a free being? No one is neither free nor not free.

Terry  {Zen Practitioner}