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Originally Posted by TheSquealer
You are talking about activating pleasure centers. I would argue thats what the bulk of society is centered on these days. Thats where so much of today's narcissism is rooted. "Whats in it for me, right now". I am talking about the proper calibration of ones expectations in others as a means to minimize frustration, stress etc. and to minimize distraction in life and from ones own goals.
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As Phil Dunphy famously said on Modern Family: "The Greatest Things In Life Will All Happen To You... If You Just Learn To Lower Your Expectations."
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Everyone is capable of exercising free will. But i think the key difference in your statement and my understanding is that we grossly overestimate the extent to which we do. We are basically robots, programmed to deny that we are robots. We are monkeys who's greatest gift is the ability to convince ourselves that we are more than monkeys. What we believe as individuals, is largely what we need to believe to feel good about ourselves and our existence, our life's purpose etc. A great book that might sum up a lot of how I see the world around me.
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Not a book I have read yet... just added it to my reading list, thanks for the recommendation. I view free will like a system of train tracks, not a private road. We can't just decide at any moment when we will make a left or a right, go faster or go slower... but there are many points along the journey where a switch exists and we can choose to go in one direction or another. That applies to individuals, making major choices like who to marry, what to study in school, what company to work with, etc... and it *used to* happen in government when we have elections or make specific choices on matters of public policy. One of the biggest challenges facing our nation is the fact that both parties now share so many of the identical views and the same financial backers to the exclusion of all other options.