Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/17/84; site hao.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!hao!woods From: woods@hao.UUCP (Greg Woods) Newsgroups: net.singles Subject: Re: choosing/possibilities Message-ID: <1682@hao.UUCP> Date: Wed, 7-Aug-85 15:54:54 EDT Article-I.D.: hao.1682 Posted: Wed Aug 7 15:54:54 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 10-Aug-85 22:28:00 EDT References: <2582@ut-sally.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: High Altitude Obs./NCAR, Boulder CO Lines: 43 > There seems to be some confusion in this group > with respect to CHOICE and POSSIBILITIES. > Choice means a conscious decision, which also > implies being informed. Maybe whoever pointed out that this whole debate is about semantics is right after all. This is not what *I* mean by choice. A choice, by my definition, does *NOT* have to be conscious. *DECISIONS* are conscious, but choices may be either conscious or unconscious. > Yes, if someone turned me down for a date, it > would be possible for me to feel several things: > (1) rejection, (2) anger at being rejected, > (3) despair that no one will ever like me, > (4) relief, (5) joy that someone is that honest > with me to say no. Then if you could choose (5), why would you ever want to choose (3)? That's all I've been trying to say. There is nothing *wrong* with choosing (3) if you want to believe in your own worthlessness (I'm not saying *you* do, Pooh, but I know lots of people who *are* like that!), but my point has been merely that you *could* choose (5). > If someone steps on my foot it is also POSSIBLE > for me to No one has ever claimed during this discussion that PHYSICAL reflexes or pain can be controlled (although some yoga masters might have something to say about that! 1/2 :-). Some of them are truly hard-wired, usually for protection. If you have ever noticed, when you touch a hot pot, your hand jerks away before you ever feel any pain. I doubt that any increased level of awareness would allow you to override this, since it is a reaction that happens before the nerve impulse gets to the brain. This is emphatically NOT the case with emotions, and even less so with our REACTIONS to emotions. --Greg -- {ucbvax!hplabs | allegra!nbires | decvax!noao | harpo!seismo | ihnp4!noao} !hao!woods CSNET: woods@NCAR ARPA: woods%ncar@CSNET-RELAY "Comes a time, when a blind man takes your hand, says don't you see..."