DoomYoshi wrote:So, if non-randomness is the main issue then we are stepping into surreal territory. Now this requires a definition of what random is. Many who claim that there is only physical reality do this with the underlying assumption that reality is non-random, although it may be at the quantum level, the world follows definite patterns. Gravity is a non-random factor, which is not a mind.
What's at stake is the definition of the word fate. Is fate opposed to chance or to will?
That's philosophical sophistry, suitable for mental masturbation at the pub, of no real significance in the real world. It's great fun, but of zero importance.
Practical psychiatry is about real issues. Is the person happy, productive, and well integrated with the customs of his tribe? No? Then something is broken. Can we fix it? Maybe, maybe not. Certainly our ability to do so isn't perfect, but with research and effort it does improve over time.
A box jellyfish swims towards the sunlight, because that's where it's more likely to find nutrition than in the other direction. That's the workings of a primitive, rudimentary mind. There's no brain, just transmitters oozing out of an eye and a few things that may be the ancestors of nerves, but it helps the box jelly fulfill its destiny.