Michael Mitchell: Archive

All liars have a tell: they're lying!

Look in a mirror and lie to yourself, pretend your reflection is a different person and tell that different person the red shirt you're wearing is really blue.

That's how obvious free will is. You can see red and say you saw blue to a person you know doesn't exist even though you're actually seeing them. You can say it. You can even act along, have a long conversation with your reflection as if it were another person, but you can't believe it.

That's the liar's tell. Just imagine the reflection is you. You can see the red shirt just as well as the actual you can and that the actual you is putting what you think above what's real. That's lying.

If you know the truth, no one can trick you into believing their lies. If you want to lie to someone, you can never let them discover the truth. If you both know the truth, but you lie to each other, then you're helping each other evade the truth. Evading reality is dishonesty.

You can't do any of this without free will. If your thoughts were determined by forces beyond your control, how could you see both the truth and the lie? You'd be forced to say your shirt was red. You'd be forced to see your reflection is a mirror. You wouldn't be capable of imagination, of thinking of anything that didn't correspond to reality.

That's free will. Without it, you couldn't even ask yourself if you have it. There's no need for evidence or experiments. All you have to do is believe in yourself, stop looking for validation of your beliefs outside of your own mind, and be honest.