Put your thinking caps on. Here we go!

I typically drive by my old high school twice a week. And every time I suddenly feel very old but stable. Time continues and mostly everything remains the same. The building is the same; the students are there. The world continues even though I am not there to experience it. It honestly comforts me. I like to know my memory/history of the school continues, as if it being there confirms where I am at now. I wonder if the same teachers are there or if they moved on. It doesn't seem like people keep jobs forever like they used to.

There was an article making the rounds on the interweb the other day about free will. Some scientists made these people read a book about how we are essentially nothing but neurons and responses; thus everything is predetermined and our interest and ability to make moral choices is pointless (since we will only react in a certain way anyway). Then the scientists had their participants take a math test where they could cheat. The scientists then concluded that the people who cheated were the ones more prone to believe they were nothing but neurons and responses. Their hypotheses went as far as saying that if people did believe this, crime would increase because there would be an apathy towards "morality."

In other words, I think the article was vaguely trying to get across that we are indoctrinated at a young age to react or act in certain ways. It is called hegemony. Thus, we have no free will because we are bound by our collaborated social upbringing. I suppose my adaptation is the social theory of it, not the scientific theory--either way they both fail to put choice in the equation even though they are examining free will.

Our whole world is set up on binary situations: we only know good or bad; although, there is sometimes a gray area. It's not our fault: the English language was based upon the binary principle. How else do we understand the world except through language? What else can we use to verbally communicate and define what we want to express to each other? Either it is a "tree" or not; love or hate; black or white; soft, hard. We have a choice to do something or nothing. And if we have a choice or an option doesn't that mean we retain free will?

Or should we take this further and say those "options" are dictated by our experiences? And as our only options which are predetermined, it is not free will? But at the same time, the person must choose one. So even in a limited way, a person has the ability to make a decision. Hopefully it is the right decision that is socially accepted by their peers.

I wish I could find the link for that article. It was on digg tuesday but after searching for an hour I couldn't find it.

Anyway, I believe we do have free will. Perhaps we are limited in how we respond to situations, but there always is a "higher road." Even in that test the scientists conducted, the participants could choose to be honest. And that is the hope for man kind and our gift and curse from God.