Morality in Nature

[bennyboy]

Like I said, what we mean by free-will are two different things. I can conceive of human agency as a part of the universe - not apart from it - and my conception of free-will doe not require it to be separate from the rest.

Yeah, I know. Your use of mind-existent words is not one of entity, but of labeling. So free will to you is a label for the kinds of brain function involved in making choices. And presumably, morality is a label for the kinds of brain function involved in mediating those choices based on one's world view or an understanding of their social implications.

It's when it comes to enforcing morality that we run into problems. People get all emotional about certain situations: child rape, murder, homosexuality, interracial marriage. They then use morality as the justification for inflicting punishment on others.

So what happens if free will really is a label for a deterministic process (i.e. the person could really not have behaved other than he did)? Punishing that process amounts to punishing determinism itself-- not very fair for the guy getting the electric chair.