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Article 4111 of comp.ai.philosophy:
Newsgroups: comp.ai.philosophy
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>From: zirdum@ccu.umanitoba.ca (Antun Zirdum)
Subject: Re: Definition of understanding
Message-ID: <1992Feb28.013430.15621@ccu.umanitoba.ca>
Organization: University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
References: <1992Feb27.025740.8034@a.cs.okstate.edu> <1992Feb27.180818.37011@spss.com> <1992Feb27.200814.9895@a.cs.okstate.edu>
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1992 01:34:30 GMT
Lines: 44

In article <1992Feb27.200814.9895@a.cs.okstate.edu> onstott@a.cs.okstate.edu (ONSTOTT CHARLES OR) writes:
>
>  Further, this leads me to an interesting question:  "What role does
>freedom of the will have in understanding, if any?"  I think, at this
>time, that freedom of the will is a vital concept in understanding becuae
>it would deny determined algorithms any understanding at all.  However,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Just because you wish it were so does not make it so!
>I have not worked anything up on this at all--I wonder what everyone
>else thinks.  The other thing is, that if one admits that understanding
>doesn't require freedom of the will, then they are in fact, calling
>to question their own freedom of the will; which, in turn, calls into
>question morality, free economic and political systems, etc.  
>
>BCnya,
>  Charles O. Onstott, III

I am not calling anything into question, I deny my freedom of the
*will*! It may seem to me that I am free to choose position A over
position B, but in the overall scheme of things my choice has
been determined by outside influences (over which I have no control!)
If the outside influence had been different I *would* have chosen
the opposite!

I have a question for you, If indeed you have freedom of will, in
what form does it manifest itself in! Is it like a coin toss,
completely random. In that case how does it make you free?
No, all decisions are produced by influences that have nothing
to do with freedom!

Morality has no basis where it not for deterministic action, what
would it mean to tell someone about morality if the very next 
action they produce is completely free of your influence?
What meaning has punishment if the person is free (as a random
element) you should not be trying to correct the persons 
behaviour since you cannot have any effect on his future behaviour
(it is then merely vengence!)

Freedom of will --> Pooh Pooh!
-- 
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*   AZ    -- zirdum@ccu.umanitoba.ca                            *
*     " The first hundred years are the hardest! " - W. Mizner  *
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