What comes to my mind is how accuracy is entangled with beliefs that make us better and more functional. Why do we care about accuracy in the first place? Would we care about being scientific and rational if we didn't associate these things with physical and moral positive results? — fart
Others have (accurately I think) mentioned that we don't get to pick many of our beliefs. In this context I think it's pretty clear that you intend those cases where we have the sense of choice. To me this sense of choice is 'free will' enough, though I believe there are other arguments against determinism. Assuming that determinism is a sufficiently meaningful/specified position to be true or false, I've never been bothered by the idea that all is predetermined. In fact, I think it has its attractions --as long as we are indeed mortal as I think we are. — fart
I'm the kind of person who is interested in the results irrespective of whether they're seen as good or bad - whether it's a cure for cancer or a meteorite that's going to wipe us out at some point in the future. — Sapientia
Can you give an example of one or more of those cases where you think that "we" have the sense of choice? I for one do not have any genuine sense of choice with respect to what I believe, and I'm certainly not the only one like this. — Sapientia
All I intend is the state of mind in which we are really not sure what is going on. Imagine a person who hosts a party and then can't find something valuable afterward. Did someone steal it? Or is this just coincidence? Now they have the choice of whether to ask embarrassing questions. I can imagine a person spending a few angst hours on this decision. More examples are a person trying to figure out whether they should or should not go to grad school or ask a female friend about becoming romantic or a boss for a raise. Illusion or not, the burden of decision seems pretty real to me.
I do see, of course, that many of our beliefs are beyond our control. — fart
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