Originally wrote this on 9/13/98. I didn't notice that mail was
continuing to go to the old address!
Hi, diana and LS!
diana wrote:
>>Maybe the pure will/Quality is free, but that's not
the same as saying that the
>>subject is free. It's a language trap. I suggest
that in future we say subject-will
>>instead of free will to avoid confusion.
I think it's a mistake to redefine "free will". It's a
perfectly useful
term
for use within the MOQ without redefining it. Free
will is essentially
an
Intellectual Level value - it is valuless to a rock,
or a fish.
>>He says that to the extent that one follows Dynamic
Quality
>>one's behaviour is free.
Most of us go day to day and and never leave the
static patterns of our
mundane lives. It is easy to go through life and never
exercise "free
will".
Obviously, we can't decide to become reptiles or
rocks. But we can and
do
make decisions that can change the direction of our
lives. We can ignore
the
DQ impulse (In fact, most of the time, most people
do!) It is when we
act
upon the DQ impulse that we step outside of our static
world and begin
to
grow.
I'm going to go a little farther and say that "free
will" is what
defines us
as human and is a prerequisite for sentience. The
ancients understood
this.
The various paradise myths actually describe a world
without free will.
>>So how would you explain that Chinese people are
more likely to believe
>>in determinism than British people? Is the decision
made by the subject
>>or the cultural patterns? If you believe it was the
subject then we call
>>it free will. If it was the culture it would be
determinism, or object
>>will.
The answer is both.
The people of any homogenous society are likely to
believe more or less
alike. Whether I like it or not, when I discuss
religion with someone
who is
not raised in a Protestant-Christian society, I filter
what that person
says
through my cultural preconceptions. At the risk of
over-generalization,
it
is the same for the members of any group. It is when
we step outside
our
cultural boundaries that we are exercising free will;
pursuing DQ.
Thanks for "listening" and good day to you all,
Donald S. Rosenow.
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