The fact that free will is debated lends credence to the notion that "Free will" is not meaningless. "Free will" has to mean something before it can be attacked.
On Fri, Jun 1, 2012 at 12:30 PM, meekerdb <meeke...@verizon.net> wrote: > On 6/1/2012 11:43 AM, Brian Tenneson wrote: > > > >> Cannot comment, don't know what ASCII string "free will" means and >> neither do you. >> >> John K Clark >> >> >> > Of course there are various degrees to which it can be free but that > doesn't mean "free will" is a meaningless string. Freedom is defined by > the observer. I note the freedom I have in choosing my beliefs. I am not > bound to agree with you nor am I bound to disagree with you. > The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines free will as follows > > "“Free Will” is a particular sort of capacity of rational agents to choose > a course of action from among various alternatives. " > > So what is the fuss about? > > > The fuss is because the concept is thought to be fundamental to > jurisprudence and social policy (it's even cited in some Supreme Court > decisions). The concept of free will has been carried over from past > theological and philosophical ideas. But now the concept is attacked by > scientists and some philosophers as incoherent or empirically false. If > they are right it would seem to imply revision of the social/legal concepts > and laws derived from it. Can existing practice be justified on a purely > utilitarian basis? > > Brent > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Everything List" group. > To post to this group, send email to everything-list@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > everything-list+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To post to this group, send email to everything-list@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to everything-list+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list?hl=en.
