On Compassion

[Xorkoth]

^^ Fully agreed. The only thing we DO have control over is how we choose to interpret/deal with/react to what the world throws at us. This is why two people born into the same situation will end up drastically different in terms of their overall satisfaction with life. What we choose to focus on becomes our internal reality and experiential framework. Great suffering can cause great bitterness and resentment, or it can lead to great appreciation for what you do have. Happiness is largely a choice. We become our internal dialogue, but with effort we can change our internal dialogue.

 

[|~~ANT~~|]

This is why two people born into the same situation will end up drastically different in terms of their overall satisfaction with life.

Identical twins often turn out very similar. What "two people" are you talking about? Do they have the same parents?

but with effort we can change our internal dialogue

If you're lucky enough, no with effort. Everything you have is given to you.

 

[Xorkoth]

I mean two people born into poverty, or a war-torn place, or wealth, or anything. People turn out differently, they respond to the same external factors in different ways. I'm saying the ways in which we respond to things is the only thing we do have control over.

 

[|~~ANT~~|]

they respond to the same external factors in different ways

They aren't the same factors. The world is chaotic. People are like pinballs. Some will hit the prize button and others will miss by a fraction of a millimetre and end up back in the hole. You can't prove free will by lumping vague demographics together. Some people in extreme poverty have parents who sacrifice everything to get their kids out of said poverty. Other parents sodomise their children. Some rich parents raise their kids well. Some neglect them and show them no love. Some poor kids get in with the wrong crowd. Some rich kids get in with the wrong crowd. You can't sensibly equate people because of any of these factors as evidence of free will.

Mathematically, the outcome of a person's life is like an infinitely complicated game of roulette. One thousandth of a millimetre can be the difference between ten grand and nothing in a casino. This distance is imperceptible to the human eye. The roulette wheel of fate has millions more factors than a casino roulette wheel. If you look at a human life mathematically, it is impossible to predict with any accuracy what is going to happen to anyone. This isn't because of choice. It's because there are so many "thousandth of a millimetre" moments involved that the numbers becomes incalculable.