Free

Free Will and Determination Essay Do you make your own choices or your destiny has been decided for you by circumstances behind your control? For thousands of years, this question has puzzled philosophers, scientist and anyone who thinks about how they choose to act and live. Part of the complexity of the matter is related to the metaphysical nature of the subject which has a close affinity with the concept of GOD. Some people think that Everything that happens in nature and life is predetermined. Morality, love, hate and free will is just an illusion(Ward, 2005) while others think, human beings have an absolute and total freedom to enjoy all the deeds and actions unconstrained by any external forces, fate or divine intervention ( Sadegh, 2011). There are at least three main approaches to the problem of free will and determinism. First is deterministic approach. Determinists main idea is that all events are caused and the caused events are never free, (Ward, 2005). The future state of things can be explained and predicted by knowing the current state of the things and the way they are affected by the work of natural laws, (Ward, 2005). This approach implies that the urge to eat, for example, is governed by our internal need and the search for food is also a natural reaction to this need. When a person is on a diet and limits his food intakes at the time of hunger, the deterministic view explains that this restriction is not by choice but it is a natural response to the health concern. To make things more complicated, if the person fails to follow his diet and fall off the wagon, the failure is attributed to the winning of the hunger force over health conscious force. The Libertarianism approach on the other hand, recognizes free will, and the ability to make choices unconstrained by forces such as physical laws, fate and divine desire. Man’s decisions are influenced, but not caused (Sadegh, 2011). The question of free will has important implications for our moral responsibility. If we do not have free will, and our behavior is determined by what came before us, like our environment, genetics and our parents then what does that mean for our justice system and our idea of crime and punishment? How do we treat individuals who commit crimes if we believe their backgrounds led them to the crimes? The third approach towards the issue of Free will and Determinism is the compatibility view or a combination of both. This simply means that determinism and freewill are not absolute concepts and freedom is compatible with determinism because freedom essentially just a matter of not being constrained in certain way when one acts or makes a choice. The reality is that humans have some degree of free will within the boundaries of determinism. Normal adult human beings in normal circumstances are able to act and choose freely. No one is holding a gun to their heads. Therefore they are fully free to choose and act even if their whole physical and psychological makeup is determined by thing that they had no control over like genetic inheritance and early upbringing. It is true that our choices are limited by some circumstances, but it does not mean that we are not free in those circumstances. Only compulsion, panic or uncontrollable impulse really removes our freedom to choose. Even when our finger is being forced down on the button, we can still act freely in resisting the pressure. Going back to my hunger example, although hunger is a natural reaction to seek food, and man might not have control over this mechanism, he is certainly in control of the way he is reacting toward this need. What to eat, when to eat and even how much to eat, are some of the decisions that man can make. Of course we can’t do everything we want to do, we might want to fry unassisted or end civil war in Africa or even free all women from abuse. But that is not free will, free will is simply a matter of having true and genuine options and opportunities for action, and being able to choose between those options according to what we want and think. One of the strongest evidence for supporting free will is human conscience. When people do something that is against their moral values they feel shame and regret and they try to use their negative experience to avoid making the same mistakes in future. This behavior and emotional response indicate that humans have a free nature. The existence of shame is unexplainable with a deterministic view. The fact that people admire and praise the good and rebuke the evil is also a confirmation of free will. Growing up and going to school in a Muslim society, we were encouraged to think, talk and write about free will and determination. The main reason was to teach us the responsibility of our actions, despite knowing that God is aware and in control of everything. It might have been difficult to understand such a philosophical concept at the time but now I am at peace with this concept due to the early teaching of Islam. Islam provides a comprehensive answer to the Free will and determinism debate. Islam, more than 1200 years ago stated: No Determinism, No Free will but something in between. According to Islam, the choices of man are not entirely determined by God. Man indeed is a free agent and freely makes choices, but these choices are limited. One of the reasons for the creation of the world is to provide a ground for humans to flourish and qualify for divine satisfaction. God will reward or punish people in the hereafter based on their deeds. One way to characterize the concept of ultimate responsibility for one’s action is by refereeing to the story of hell and heaven. If we are responsible for what we do, then it make sense to propose that it could be just to punish some in hell and reward others in heaven. It makes sense because what we do is absolutely up to us. But, one certainly does not have to believe in the story of heaven and hell in order to understand and believe the notion of responsibility. Karl Popper, one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century also recognised that there had to be some balance between complete determinism (clocks) and complete disorder and chance (clouds), (Haselhurst ,2012). â€Å"What we need for understanding rational human behaviour and indeed, animal behaviour is something intermediate in character between perfect chance and perfect determinism something intermediate between perfect clouds and perfects clocks (Popper, 1972, p.232)† (Haselhurst ,2012). 1. Ward, K. Baron, D’Holbach And Determinism, open source buddhism Oxford University Press (2005) 2. Sadegh, M (2011) Citing website. Free will and determination in Islam. Retrieved Feb 20, 2013, from http://www. bsharat. com/id/1/2/1jabr. html 3. Haselhurst, G, (2012) Citing website. Philosophy of Education. Retrieved Fed 20, 2013, from http://www. spaceandmotion. com/Philosophy-Free-Will-Determinism. htm.

2pac Shakur :: Tupac Amur Shakur

Tupac (Two-pahk) Amur Shakur, commonly known as 2pac, led a violent life. He died on September 13, 1996. He was a gangsta rapper/Aspiring actor. Tupac was a big figure in the rap community, always doing what he wanted and not caring what others thought of him. His life symbolized what a lot of people have gone through, through his music and movies he showed us how hard life can be. Tupac was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1971. His family and he moved to Baltimore, Maryland early in his life. He took Performing Arts classes at his school; his teachers said he looked promising. He never finished school. He dropped out and moved to a small town outside Oakland, CA (â€Å"Associated†), however he did go to college and finish his high school credits. All his life he was raised by his mom, with his sister. He always led a violent life; April 5, 1993, he assaulted a fellow rapper with a baseball bat. October 31, 1993, he was charged with shooting two off duty police officers. The charges were later dropped. November 19, 1993, he was convicted of sexual assault (â€Å"Death†). In November 1994, Tupac himself was shot during an attempted robbery outside a music studio in New York. Tupac did, however, mention this; â€Å"Thug life to me is dead. If it's real, let somebody else represent it because I'm tired of it.† Shakur told Vibe Magazine. â€Å"I represented it too much. I was Thug Life†(â€Å" Associated†). Tupac had a very promising career. His first album â€Å"2pacallyps Now† was very successful. Not too late after that his movie â€Å"Juice† was released in 1992. He released two more albums titled â€Å"Strictly for my Niggaz† and â€Å"Me against the world† and two more movies â€Å"Poetic Justice† (1993) and â€Å"Above the Rim†(1994). His last album, â€Å"All Eyes on Me† sold over 6 million copies and was the first double CD for rap music. (â€Å"Thuglife†)(â€Å"Associated†) 4:03 p.m. PDT, Friday, September 13, Tupac died of respiratory failure and cardio-pulmonary arrest at University Medical Center, Las Vegas(Payne). He died of bullet wounds to the abdomen and chest at the young age of 25 (â€Å"Unofficial†). â€Å"Shakur was shot four times in the chest and abdomen. Police believe he was the target.† He lingered in a coma before he died. So far police have no suspects. All they are saying is that the people were in a white cadillac, not from Las Vegas where he was shot (â€Å"Associated†).

Leigh Ann Walker, Staff Accountant Essay

Leigh Ann Walker was an exceptional student in college. Her 3.9 grade point average and her involvement in numerous business organizations set her apart from most other students. As a result of her hard work and dedication on campus, Leigh Ann received a total of six job offers. Upon graduation, Leigh Ann accepted an offer from a Big Six accounting firm to be an entry-level auditor. Despite such accomplishments, we believe that Leigh Ann made a significant mistake by lying to her supervisor about her CPA examination, and that she was rightly punished for her actions. We feel as if Leigh Ann’s supervisor, Jackie Vaughn, did not overreact in this situation, but rather she handled the situation like a professional should. The public accounting industry is one that has substantially high standards for integrity and honesty, and in order to maintain that reputation, the individuals that frame the industry must not compromise their standards in any way. Further, the public accounting industry is in an even larger spotlight today as a result of high-profile accounting scandals that have taken place in recent years. The process of regaining trust from the public can take many years after significant fraud schemes such as those that occurred about a decade ago. Due to such a high importance of integrity in the public accounting industry, we would have dealt with this situation in a similar manner that both Jackie Vaughn and Don Roberts did. Although the actions of Leigh Ann are not to the scale of dishonesty that large fraud schemes are, we believe that if someone is faithful in little things, he/she will be faithful in larger ones, and in the same way, if someone is dishonest in little things, he/she will not be honest with greater responsibilities. So even though Leigh Ann’s lying about her CPA exam dates had nothing to do with a large financial fraud scheme, she still lied about a small situation, which could easily lead to larger dishonest acts in her future career. In Roberts’ point of view, he likely views each of the staff members in his firm as potential partners and future decision makers for his firm. Leigh Ann’s way of hiding her embarrassment by lying about when she planned to take the CPA examination demonstrates that she lacks personal integrity. If Roberts were to allow such an individual to progress in his firm to a position of significant decision making, he could be jeopardizing the reputation, and even more important, the future existence of his firm. Roberts’ decision to let Leigh Ann go was not solely based on his own reasoning, either, as he consulted with three other partners in the firm as to how he should go about handling the situation. However, this does not go without saying that Roberts has personal integrity, either. At the end of the case, Roberts clearly demonstrates his lack of honesty by telling Leigh Ann that he, and the other partners, would not reveal the reason why she was dismissed if they were contacted by her potential employers in the future. This case is a demonstration that personal integrity is difficult to find just about anywhere. The importance of teaching honesty and integrity to the future leaders of this country is of utmost importance.

My Teaching Philosophy Of Education - 1486 Words

My teaching philosophy of education is being able to recognise that all children learn in different and unique ways. I believe that all students should have a safe learning environment which enables them to grow physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. As a teacher, I aim to act as a guide for student learning and provide demonstrations and understanding to all students. More specifically as a physical education teacher, I aim to bring a positive and encouraging attitude to the students and incorporate cooperative games that involve every student regardless of abilities. I aim to create atmosphere where students feel they can ask questions about their personal learning and reach their full potential. Teaching physical education, I†¦show more content†¦This assessment task is a checklist for each individual student in the class that assesses their ability to catch, throw and dribble a ball. It also assesses attacking and defending tactical strategies. Each column has a heading followed by correct skill movements that are essential for students to be able to perform the skill correctly. I used this assessment checklist by organising a lesson around basketball. The lesson started off with a warm up and then I got students into groups where they could practice their passing, catching and dribbling skills. They then went into a minor game of number basketball. By teaching and observing this lesson it enabled me to work my way through each student and assess them on their abilities on these specific skills. If a student was below the standard I would put a ‘D’ for developing, if they were at standard I would put one tick and if they were above standard I would put two ticks. I used the Victorian Curriculum as a guide to where year 7 8 students should be. This relates to my teaching philosophy as I was able to create a safe and positive learning environment for year 7 and 8 students to be able to work to the best of their abilities. By us ing this checklist, I was able to see where students are at and give them some verbal feedback throughout the lesson, this enabled students to reflect on their movements and improve their skills. This encourages more questioningShow MoreRelatedMy Teaching Philosophy Of Education880 Words   |  4 PagesAccording to the Education Philosophy test that we took in class, my education philosophy matched with social reconstruction. Social Reconstructionist believes that systems must keep changing to improve human conditions. Also, emphasizes social questions and to create a better society. Social reconstructionist believe that you have to start over to make things better. 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