In my limited, layman’s thinking of this concept, it’s that you’re “free” to do anything you want. You just never will do anything you want, because of various ways you observe and apply decision-making to a given scenario.
Can I go outside and set my car on fire? Sure. Will I? No, of course not. I’m prohibited from such a decision based on a variety of punitive factors against making such a decision, not to mention I’m not insane. I will never decide on a whim to set my car on fire.
So… am I truly free to decide on such a course of action? Viewed in the context I just described… no, I don’t think I have free will.
Go left or go right? Put yourself in the same situation a million times, under the same exact circumstances, you’ll make the same decision over and over again. You’ll never make the other decision.
In my limited, layman’s thinking of this concept, it’s that you’re “free” to do anything you want. You just never will do anything you want, because of various ways you observe and apply decision-making to a given scenario.
Can I go outside and set my car on fire? Sure. Will I? No, of course not. I’m prohibited from such a decision based on a variety of punitive factors against making such a decision, not to mention I’m not insane. I will never decide on a whim to set my car on fire.
So… am I truly free to decide on such a course of action? Viewed in the context I just described… no, I don’t think I have free will.
Go left or go right? Put yourself in the same situation a million times, under the same exact circumstances, you’ll make the same decision over and over again. You’ll never make the other decision.