1 upvotes, 3 direct replies (showing 3)
View submission: Which side shoulders the burden of proof?
The person presuming its existence to hold people accountable for actions that are entirely predictable based on their circumstances. Eg hungry people steal food; well-fed people don't.
Also the person asserting it suddenly pops into existence when you turn 18 (or pick an age). I don't see anyone claiming babies are choosing their actions and should be held accountable for them, but after a certain number of days alive that switches. Anyone arguing for that position needs to clearly explain the mechanism by which they didn't have free will one day earlier and shouldn't have been held accountable back to day one.
What empirical measurement can we make to determine the age at which free will starts?
Comment by TheAncientGeek at 03/09/2024 at 09:41 UTC
1 upvotes, 1 direct replies
It is not the case that every action is predictable.
Comment by diogenesthehopeful at 03/09/2024 at 08:09 UTC
0 upvotes, 2 direct replies
What empirical measurement can we make to determine the age at which free will starts?
Minus conception. I'd argue for humans, the sperm cell is already showing a sign of trying to survive. Any form of life or almost life with a flagellum is demonstrating effort. Perhaps the sperm cell doesn't understand what it is trying to do but I'd argue the rock isn't trying to be or do anything. Maybe the sperm isn't trying to reach the egg and it is a matter of luck that it gets through once it is in the vaginal area. If that is the case then some time after birth, the infant is clearly trying to navigate his environment and that is a matter of intentionality because he soon realizes that just because he is hungry doesn't mean he will get fed straight away. He feels the need to be fed once out of the womb and that delay may not have been so apparent while being nurtured through the placenta.
Comment by Ok-Lavishness-349 at 03/09/2024 at 03:55 UTC
1 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Or is it the person denying its existence to abandon the notion of personal responsibility?