James Carrano

PHI 100 24N

Blog Post 3

2 November 2014

Libertarianism vs Determinism

There is a big difference between libertarians and determinists. Libertarians believe that people can control some of their actions through free will, while other actions are caused by the physical world around them. Hard determinists believe that free will does not exist at all. These two types of beliefs are obviously very different. There isn't anything in common between them like there was in the empiricism vs rationalism debate. I believe that libertarianism is the most plausible explanation for the cause of human actions. I believe that people choose their fate in most of the situations they’re in, but sometimes the outside world has an influence on the outcome of the situation.

Libertarianism talks more about what humans decide more than hard determinism does. It says that humans can decide some things for themselves while not deciding other things. Determinism just says that there’s no such thing as choice, and that the outside world controls everyone. I think they both talk about human behavior, but libertarianism talks more about what humans can do than not.

Libertarianism is more detailed than determinism is. Libertarianism has more rules or qualifications to it than determinism does. In determinism, everything is chosen by the physical world and there is no way humans can choose something for themselves. Determinism is very straightforward with no acceptions. Libertarianism is more detailed because it says that humans can make some choices, but sometimes can’t.

Hard determinism clearly has fewer parts than libertarianism does. Libertarianism says that sometimes humans can decide, but sometimes not, while determinism says humans can’t decide under any circumstances. You can easily see that determinism is alot more simple and easy to understand. There is much more room for error when talking about libertarianism. When deciding if someone can decide something or not, you have to think alot about it, so you don’t confuse one thing with another.

I think libertarianism keeps up with current beliefs more than determinism does. Humans usually want to be independent and make choices on their own. There are many ways that libertarianism relates to the world we live in. It relates to republicans when talking about politics. They want a government that doesn't make too many choices for them, but can make some. They usually want to make choices independently. There aren't too many people who believe that humans should not be able to make choices for themselves. Pretty much everyone wants to be able to make their own decisions.

1. Libertarianism and determinism are the best theories of causes of human behavior.
2. Determinism is less detailed whereas libertarianism has more rules or qualifications.
3. Therefore, libertarianism is the best theory for the cause of human behavior.