[MD] Free Will

[Steven Peterson]

Hi Ian,

On Wed, Aug 3, 2011 at 3:35 AM, Ian Glendinning
<ian.glendinning at gmail.com> wrote:
> Steve,
> Much earlier in this debate dmb and Steve were looking at recent Sam
> Harris position on free-will ...
>
> DMB said,
> "[The] neurological determinism of [Sam Harris] is new to me and I
> think it's just awful. Patricia Churchland, of all people, has
> criticized him for crude reductionism. She was harsh. And they're
> pretty good friends! She says she wishes he had waited a couple years
> to write that book."
>
> I agree with that. I'm a big fan of Sam Harris too, but his recent
> stuff he was touting round the speaking circuit based on his latest
> book was ill informed on the brain-science aspects, where he is no
> expert. His reductionism was too "greedy" to coin a Dennett term.

Steve:
Harris actually has a phD in neuroscience, so he actually is an
"expert" when it comes to brain science.

What position(s) does he hold that he regard as greedy reductionism?

dmb:
> But again, I still can't see what you and dmb are actually disagreeing
> about when it comes to free-will.

Steve:
Really? Or is it that you can't see how dmb could still possibly be disagreeing?