Choices

Do we ever really make choices?

A. Some people believe that, during the course of our lives, each of us makes choices, some personal, some that impact others. These choices can be evaluated in terms of society as either good or bad, and the choices say something about us. Some believe that each of us acts by using either logic or emotion to come to a conclusion, and that each act is our own choice. It is the duty of parents and teachers to instruct our youth as to right and wrong, and then the duty of each of us to choose right. Our acts are our own, and we should learn from them.

B. Others believe that we never really make choices, so we are not responsible for the apparent good or bad that happens to us. We never really do good or bad, we just act according to the pressures on us. The factors that lead to apparent choices are larger than us and include: genetics; evolution; psychology; external social pressures and influences; and luck. A person who commits a wrongful act is merely a messenger conveying the evils of society. You really are never responsible for anything that happens to you, as where you are internally is not of your own doing, and the external circumstances around you are also not of your own doing. If we use laws to change society or to change people, we can reduce wrongful acts.

Here are some comments:

• How can we know about the truth of either of these contentions? In science, we use statistics, so can we use them here? For example, children are certainly most likely to fall into the B camp. Lets look at divorce. Divorce is much more common than it was 50 years ago. Children who grow up in homes that do not have a father figure are much more likely to attempt and commit suicide. So, using B, we should enact laws that prevent divorce. Yet, many of those who believe in B oppose limiting divorce.
• We are involved in a war in Iraq mainly because of the policies of the current administration of which, as President, George W. Bush is the leader. He used his internal beliefs and external circumstances to bring us to where we are now. Yet, many who see B as the way of the world, throw blame at President Bush and even call him evil. Just because he is an educated and priviledged white man doesn't mean that he is any different from the rest of us in terms of being able to overcome the B influences. So, if one truly believes in B and opposes the actions of the current administration, one would explain President Bush's actions in those terms and would suggest a leader with a different set of biases and experiences who would take us in a new direction.
• Those who espouse B often seem to use it only as a way to get votes or score points, with no attempt to look at it scientifically or to apply it universally.
• Those who follow A often fail to consider the elements in B, which can have some influence. For example, there is little evidence that homosexuality is a choice in the same sense as choosing what car to buy, whether to rob a bank, or even what religion to follow. Yet, many who believe in A believe that laws should somehow limit what homosexuals can do, such as marry.
• Some choices are largely determined by B and have no absolute right and wrong. These include: religious choice; abortion; end of life decisions. What disturbs some who believe in B is that those who espouse A try to control some of these, leading to a fear that those who believe in A really want to control all of these.
• One current issue, illegal immigrants, is a case in point. Have these people chosen to disobey our laws and should they be punished in some way or have forces beyond their control driven them here? A's believe that the arduous journey to come here indicates the action of free will against the laws of our land. B's believe that the circumstances and internal makeup of these people made their acts no more free will than bees flying to fragrant flowers. One would not squash a bee for following it's instincts.
• DocBrain finds the B logic belittling and the A logic often too confining.