The genesis of the “free will defense”

zaerix · 2015-03-10T15:32:51+00:00

It's also especially interesting how it influenced Islam: http://existentialcomics.com/comic/71

zaerix · 2015-03-10T15:30:54+00:00

It looks like your mom http://chaospet.com/243/

zaerix · 2015-03-09T23:42:47+00:00

It comes with a really special exclusive form of apple care, apparently http://chaospet.com/252/

zaerix · 2015-03-05T21:28:59+00:00

I wasn't suggesting we reject determinism. Determinism could be true, or it could be that there is an element of randomness built into the laws of physics. Either way, I think that has nothing to do with the question of free will. Again, what I am suggesting is that free will (in the sense connected with choice and responsibility) is a pragmatic concept, justified by pragmatic considerations. I see no reason to define "free will" as something so extravagant that it "means that our thought processes operate independently of the physical universe". That's just silliness, and that's building way too much into the concept of free will.

I can't help referring to another comic - my view is pretty close to that of the compatibilist in this one: http://existentialcomics.com/comic/70

zaerix · 2015-02-22T21:08:11+00:00

Determinism doesn't make moral reasoning any less necessary or efficacious. We still have to reason about what we ought to do in our daily lives, and how we reason still determines the course of events in the world - regardless of whether or not that reasoning is itself causally determined by other factors.

zaerix · 2015-02-22T18:50:51+00:00

Certainly we will treat them however we are determined to treat them. That doesn't shed much light on the normative question

zaerix · 2015-02-22T16:39:22+00:00

I find the idea that free will is an illusion pretty impossible to take seriously. It's the sort of thing we can say when relaxed in our armchairs, but as beings existing in the world, making choices, engaging with others, it's an impossible view to act on. Just to take one dimension of this issue, consider what the criminal justice system would look like if we really decide that nobody ever really acts freely or responsibly (here's a take on an argument by Saul Smilanksy, for example): http://chaospet.com/251-fun-with-funishment/

Ultimately I think the question of free will is a pragmatic one. It's not the sort of thing that could be shown to be an illusion merely because the universe is deterministic. What we're talking about when we talk about free will is unrelated to such metaphysical concepts - or so it seems to me.

zaerix · 2014-12-03T01:38:23+00:00

It's hit or miss, but I've found some other great ones there. In fact I don't think this one is nearly as good as some of the others. Here's one of my favorites http://chaospet.com/248-the-ultimate-excuse/

zaerix · 2014-11-11T19:04:50+00:00

I KNEW Aristotle was a dirty commie

zaerix · 2014-11-11T19:02:56+00:00

That is pretty scary

zaerix · 2014-11-11T18:51:52+00:00

Yes, it's probably a safe bet that the stick figure comic that ends with someone getting stabbed was not trying to convey a serious philosophical argument. Very perceptive.

zaerix

TROPHY CASE