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From: pindor@gpu.utcc.utoronto.ca (Andrzej Pindor)
Subject: Re: Free Will
Message-ID: <DM5voM.DAA@gpu.utcc.utoronto.ca>
Organization: UTCC Public Access
References: <4du5gq$tj@ixnews8.ix.netcom.com> <1996Jan25.172014.1140@media.mit.edu> <4eqkgg$k13@ixnews7.ix.netcom.com> <4ermqk$jms@dogbert.ipa.net>
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Date: Fri, 2 Feb 1996 18:36:22 GMT
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Xref: glinda.oz.cs.cmu.edu comp.ai.philosophy:37362 comp.ai:36697 sci.philosophy.meta:24104

In article <4ermqk$jms@dogbert.ipa.net>, Lee Kent <ntc@ipa.net> wrote:
>Take the following scenario:
>
>Man A believes there is no free will.
>Man B believes there is free will.
>Both have beliefs and from them make conclusions.
>A conclusion from belief alone is a choice made on a faith of one or
>the other perceived viewpoint. Just like the theorist who believes his
>theory and therefore draws conclusions from it that are based in
>belief and not law. 
>In effect:
>Both have proven the concept of free will.
>One with the intent to exercise it to disprove it.
>The other with the intent to exercise it to prove it.
>Yet neither will agree they act from the same cause.
>Which itself is a result they both experience in
>different perspectives.

I am sorry I cannot see any free will above. Both A and B act on the basis of 
their beliefs, they do not have any choice. A will conclude something because 
she/he believes there is no free will, B  will conclude something else because 
she/he believs that there is free will. They have not chosen their beliefs,
have they? 
There is of course a problem if a 'belief' has a physical manifestation. If
you claim that it does not, then you are a dualist and the discussion ends
right here, since there is no rational justification for dualism, it is 
a matter of a belief :-). If a 'belief' has a physical manifestation, then
of course the choice above is physically determined.

>Lee Kent Hempfling.................Whom ever said 
>
Andrzej
-- 
Andrzej Pindor                        The foolish reject what they see and 
University of Toronto                 not what they think; the wise reject
Information Commons                   what they think and not what they see.
pindor@breeze.hprc.utoronto.ca                      Huang Po
