My Basic Thought On Free Will

[Piers]

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Well if you are going to discuss this question rigorously, it is imperative that you define what you mean by "free will" in very precise technical terms.

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No $hit.

In my opinion free will exists.

The most natural way to consider it is as a sensation that humans, and presumably other primates at least, feel when they make decisions.

The advantage it gives the life form is I think clear, especially if you consider a human that does not have the sensation of free will when making decisions can reasonably be considered insane.

Inability to generate the sensation of free will typically leads to a feeling that life is meaningless and a much-increased chance of suicide. It would appear easy to see how life forms evolved to have this particular trait.

Another way to view free will, is as a view we have on the world, analogues to say tinted glasses. Viewing all social reactions between humans with the presumption of free will makes the interpretation of these actions much easier and hence much simplifies decision-making.

While the sensation of free will is a very useful process, it is nevertheless a form of self-delusion and there I think times where it is useful to deactivate it.

For instance say you make a tight pre flop fold, and would have floped the nuts and miss out on a huge flop. This can be quite distressing if you actually believe you had a free choice when you folded.

I find myself generally unaffected by this sort of thing, because I can get myself to really believe I did not have a choice. That the way the universe was constructed I had no option but to make the decision I made. This prevents me getting upset and allows me to more easily maintain my focus. In almost all other situations I manage to maintain the illusion of free will. Fortunately I believe I have a particularly stable personality, so I feel I can get away with such dangerous tampering with my psychological balance. I would not necessarily recommend it to everyone.