George's two step refutation is the shortest way of explaining why we cannot take credit or blame for our actions.

"For we who appreciate speedily arriving at the heart of a matter, here’s how to disprove any free will argument in two easy steps: 1. Ask the free will believer to give an example of a choice they consider to be freely willed. 2. Ask the free will believer to say whether or not that choice was caused. Congratulations; you’ve just won! If the free will believer says the choice was caused, the ensuing causal regression makes free will impossible. If the free will believer says the choice was uncaused, the choice cannot rationally be attributed to a human will. You can easily apply this two-step refutation to any, and all, free will arguments."

You can find this and more in George Ortega's book: "Exploring the Illusion of Free Will".

http://amzn.com/B00DINW91Y

George was originally the guy who explained why free will is impossible in a way I could understand. Check out his website for more information.

http://causalconsciousness.com/

I start out this episode by reading some relevant things from George Ortega's book: "Exploring the Illusion of Free Will".

http://amzn.com/B00DINW91Y

George was originally the guy who explained why free will is impossible in a way I could understand. Check out his website for more information.

http://causalconsciousness.com/

I am attempting to explain the connection between the belief in Free Will and the denial it is causing about other subjects like Abortion and animal suffering.

I also posted a facebook note called "Free Will and Abortion Denial". I am hoping to publish it as another book but even if I do, I want it to be freely available with no restrictions to read online.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/10152982881584326/

Do you think I am right in my theory that abortions will be reduced in a world where people understand the causes of things and make a better world?

Why is abortion such a bad thing?

Just as people are ignorant of the many causes that lead them to do what they do, I believe many of them are also ignorant of the effect it has on a society when murder becomes legal. I have talked about the truth of determinism and the falsehood of free will in the first 20 episodes of this show. Now it is time to get back to the subject of abortion specifically because it was the cause for this show. If it had not been for my anti-abortion activism, I might never have gotten into the topic of free will.

That being said, I will not abandon the free will topic because it has been proven to have greater relevance than any other debate. The reason for this is that all debates are really under the umbrella of the illusion of "choice". Other topics such as the existence of god, gay marriage, gun control, and yes, even abortion are only solvable once someone understands determinism.

Why do you think all the debates continue? The answer is more obvious than you might think. People can't simply choose to all agree on them! They can't even compromise about topics that are essential to their worldview.

In this episode, I talk about death, graveyards, tombstones, and what I want done with my organs after I am dead. I also explain all the causes that led to my beliefs about death and why it is the end of existence.

In this episode, I read what is perhaps one of the creepiest stories in the bible. The story where Jesus kills a herd of pigs by sending demons into them.

Matthew 8:28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. 29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? 30 And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. 31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. 32 And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine:and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. 33 And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. 34 And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus:and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.

The main thing to understand about this story is that if you believe in "devils" which are capable of "possessing" and controlling the actions of a human or pigs, then you have no way of saying that we have free will and are in control of what we do.

Similar, but not identical stories are told in Mark 5:1-20 and Luke 8:26-39. In those stories, it is just one man possessed of devils. In either case, Jesus allowed the devils to go into the pigs which caused them to run off and drown.

Free will is still impossible for an atheist because of determinism, but this story provides an extra example from the bible of something supernatural that if it existed would cause us to do things we don't want to do. So while I don't think this story ever happened, it is something that Christian fundamentalists have to take seriously. If you believe this, then you have to also accept that Jesus had authority over the devils and gave permission for them to enter the pigs. Basically, this implies that Jesus and the devils are pig murderers. No animal rights activist will like this story.

Also, for the christian carnivores who think pigs exist only to be killed and eaten, remember that eating swine is forbidden in Leviticus 11:7 and Deuteronomy 14:8.

If you go back to episode 10, you can hear what I think of God changing the languages of the humans in Genesis 11. How is it that people can claim to believe the stories in the bible and yet still think we are able to freely choose?

This episode is mostly just my rant about what I think of Christmas traditions. The variety of traditions people have cause them to do things around christmas that they would never do otherwise. It shows just how robotic humans are and how unfree their wills are. There are most certainly causes for the different beliefs and traditions associated with christmas, but most people don't have a clue what they are.

More importantly though, why do parents lie to their kids about Santa Claus? Don't they see the negative effects that result from it later in their child's life?

I think that the belief in an afterlife is sometimes harmful when it comes with the belief that we must "earn" an afterlife and that somehow we deserve reward or punishment for our actions. This relies heavily on free will belief but at the same time refutes it.

If someone is compelled to do something in this life because of their belief that it affects their next life, is this not an example of something they are forced to do our of fear or their trust in a promise of a reward? The point is that afterlife belief is a cause of other beliefs and actions. This is why it is relevant for me to know what others believe and why.

I have many reasons for not believing that there is a self/soul/spirit that survives death. Because of this, my actions are instead based on how they affect me and others now and in the future on this planet.

Trick Slattery commented on one of my facebook posts and gave me some thought experiments. In this episode, I read and respond to them and then talk some more about why I am against abortion.

Experiment #1:

Imagine, if you will, a world where 50% of pregnancies ended with a baby never being born, but rather a fetus (at month two) that stays that same size and development, in it's unconscious state, and feeds off of the mother in the womb for the entirety of the mother's life...causing a permanent pregnant state in the mother, preventing any births of another child while there, causing hormone changes in the mother, the inability to work at times, labor pains, and so on for the rest of the mothers life. Would it be an obligation of the mother to carry that fetus their entire life so that it can live? Would it be discrimination for the mother to remove the fetus? How about if the mother wants a child but cannot while that particular fetus is there? Is that a sacrifice she will just have to live with? Will she just have to sacrifice living in a perpetual pregnant state for the rest of her life, reducing the quality of her life and health dramatically?

Experiment #2:

Imagine we live in a word where their are alien pods that sometimes produce a substance in the air. It's known that walking outside their is a 1% chance that some of the pod substance will attach to your head and start producing an alien on your head. Once it's attached and starts to form, if you remove it the alien is sure to die (as it needs to be attached to you to live). The alien will eventually form to a 10 pound creature that is permanently attached to your head. Any attempts to remove it will instantaneously kill the alien. The alien attached to your head starts as an unconscious pile of cells that after a few years eventually has the mental capacity of a really dumb 1 year old child. It constantly drools, poos and pees on you (and tears apart any diapers you try to put on it), is constantly yelling, crying, or making noise, and pretty much makes your life a living hell. It never gets more intelligent than this. We know this will happen if you are unlucky enough to get some pod substance on you. Are you obligated to let this alien grow on your head, and live there the rest of your life? Is it okay for you to remove it when it's just a bunch of unconscious cells and hasn't formed a consciousness yet?

Not having a free will does not mean that we don't have social constructs of responsibility, standards, expectations, obligations, duties, agreements, or contracts. The fact that we can expect things of people at all is another example of determinism.

What it does mean is that these expectations are all forced upon us just like our existence and that we cannot logically credit or blame people for their conformity to what we expect. This is important for us to understand to reduce hatred and violence. I feel an obligation to act in a way that I believe is the most moral way. Since my will is to create a happier world, I cannot stay silent about what I think will lead to that outcome.

If I am the only one who can say or do something, doesn't that obligate me to do it?