What shakes the elephant?
So I've been thinking about destiny, free will and determinism and the idea of fate. These are literally the only four words I can remember from my entire two years in sixth form. Yes.
Someone recently said to me that everything that happens to me is a direct consequence of my choices, which is, for the most part, true. I mean, I can't suffer through an earthquake and think "well, I've gone and done it again", but the normal, everyday stuff is down to me.
The thing is, though, that I(along with everything else in the universe) am a direct result of everything that has happened before my existence. The big bang, the formation of elements and compounds from base molecules, evolution, the formation of how the human brain works. Everything that has happened so far in history has been the result of logical, scientifically measurable steps.
So how can all that have happened, not by chance, but by the very opposite of chance, how can all that have happened and yet we can suddenly say that I am responsible for all my choices and actions?
We can't. If anything, every single event so far in the universe, as a consequence of the law of cause and effect, action and reaction, is responsible for my actions.
To be honest, that both takes the pressure off somewhat whilst at the same time crushing my spirit immensely.