Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!eos!riacs!turing.arc.nasa.gov!nienart
From: nienart@turing.arc.nasa.gov (john nienart)
Newsgroups: comp.ai
Subject: Re: Free Will and Self-Awareness
Message-ID: <796@hydra.riacs.edu>
Date: 9 May 88 22:28:02 GMT
References: <8805091739.AA27922@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Sender: uucp@riacs.edu
Reply-To: nienart@turing.arc.nasa.gov.UUCP (john nienart)
Followup-To: comp.ai
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center
Lines: 33
Keywords: Introspection, Eastern religions, pop music
Summary: One more bite for the sharks

In article <8805091739.AA27922@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> eyal@COYOTE.STANFORD.EDU (Eyal Mozes) writes:
>
>                 Specifically, we have to realize that free will is a
>fact, perceived directly by introspection, and it is therefore wrong to
>reject it just because we would like all natural processes to conform
>to the model of physics.

What makes you so certain that _anything_ perceived be introspection is
fact? Introspection provides me with the "fact" that there is, in fact, a
"me" to do the introspecting, but there are a number of philosophies and
religions (mostly of the Eastern variety) which insist that this is _not_ a
fact, but rather simply an illusion we impose on ourselves, essentially
through habit, and that through the proper discipline, we can train
ourselves to note the absence of this self. After this process is complete
(no claim is being made here as to personal success in this), introspection
apparently confirms a hypothesis which directly contradicts our previous
introspective belief. Which introspection is correct?
>
>Man's
>free will lies in the act of focusing his consciousness, in his choice
>to think or not and what to think about. This means that free will is
>consistent with having reasons that determine your thoughts and your
>actions, because, by your choice in focusing your consciousness, it is
>you who chose those reasons.

Maybe its just me, but I find rather frequently that I'm thinking about
something that I'm _sure_ I'd rather not think about (or humming a trashy
pop song I hate, etc.). It certainly feels at these times that I don't have
complete control over that upon which my consciousness is focussed. So would
you say that I _dont_ have free will (despite my introspective belief in
it), or that the (introspectively motivated) "fact" of my lack of control
is false?

--John