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To: aquila48
I think free will is an illusion.

I tend to agree, or at least think it's a far narrower stream to access than most people think.

But if that is so, then why do we feel we can hold people “responsible” for their choices and actions, if they had no control over their choices. And how do we then justify “punishing” someone for a “crime”?

Because even the pre-determinist believes that a person's behavior is a combination of nature and nurture, and punishment becomes part of the nurture. So even if someone is pre-determined to a certain behavior, learning that it will result in misery will become part of the data that guides their little internal flow chart. Also, we still must protect society from certain dangers, and that includes people or actions with a proven track record of destruction.

72 posted on 10/21/2023 11:48:33 AM PDT by A_perfect_lady (The greatest wealth is to live content with little. -Plato)
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To: A_perfect_lady

And to consider, our kind is made in the image of God.


76 posted on 10/21/2023 12:16:06 PM PDT by aspasia
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