Do we have free will, and are we responsible for our actions

[Jim Pickens]

Can we truly say that humankind possess free will? Does anything?
What are we other than a summation of our experiences? And also, Dogs>cats. Fight me

[Word]

I'm new to this site, and I actually made an account just so I could reply to this question. The free will versus determinism debate has raged on for millennia, and for good reason: humans like to think about the scope of action. Simply put, people like to know what their life means beyond what they themselves can observe. This is why determinism is so depressing: it dictates that everything anyone has ever done, is doing, or will do has been written since the beginning of time. That's also why determinism is endearing: there are those who prefer to know that their fate is predetermined; you don't have to worry about having a purpose or direction, and who doesn't like being part of a greater scheme? Personally, I believe that humans have free will. That's just my opinion, and it's not a fact. If you hear anyone talk about "proof" of free will (or determinism), do not believe them. If the science or methods to determine the workings of the universe existed, I think there would be more immediate consequences, and I doubt some random schmuck would even have access to that science. Even if scientists were to make a breakthrough today and settle the debate forever, I doubt they would release their findings for some time. Coming to grips with knowing something so unfalsifiable (AKA, that can't be disproven) as fact would probably be impossible to swallow. That's why the subject makes for good debate, and is a good discussion question. But the day humanity learns the answer, I think purpose will have gone out the window anyway.

[vishkun]

@Jim-Pickens hahaha yes human have free will..... But its limited to some point!

Like you can eat whatever you want...

But you can't eat wherever you want

[cjko]

@Jim-Pickens said in Do we have free will, and are we responsible for our actions:

Can we truly say that humankind possess free will? Does anything?

Yes. We do have free will. It's part of our will to stay alive. We do have good and bad options in our lives, you're driven with your will to post something like this. The will to stay like you are right now.. your choice is what brought you to where you are rn or whom you are with. What shirt you wore, what food you ate, drink you drunk, text you sent, etc. I'd like to remind you that everything you decide to take /do / give, you are accountable for such actions. That's why we judge things ; it's either good or bad for us or for others. It's the will to choose and decide on your own. One tiny action has a bbutterfly effect to your system and to the universe ( imo).

What are we other than a summation of our experiences?

We are what we think, we say, we do.

Dogs>cats. Fight me

I'd go for doggos, most loyal creature and lovable

[Syler1998]

I would answer with both: yes and no
I feel myself like i have a free will, and, because of that, iam also responsible for my actions....if i were to kill a person, it would be my wrong doing...not the fault of someone else
On the other hand: who really knows if we have some kind of free will...maybe free will is just something to make us feel comfortable...after all, our brain functions like a computer, with the only difference being, that it is a biological processer...does a computer have a free will?

[alkal33]

nah dude cats better than dogs come on

[[[global:former-user]]]

The soul chooses which kind of life experience to be born into so it's free in that sense. It's not really a coincidence that people are born into suffering of one kind or another as it is the universal soul making that decision to experience suffering and forget it's true nature so that it can experience what it feels to identify with a individual perspective.

[TheGoldenMole]

@Jim-Pickens I'm choosing to comment on this post. I would've skipped it, but I thought deciding to do this is enough. I'm also going to choose to upvote this, you're welcome use your free will wisely