aha, the old determinism v free will debate. how i love it.
not to throw a monkey wrench into all this, but what if we cannot look at this issue using such boolean methods? in short, what if it were both?
now, before the kneejerk, hear me out. there are forces at play that control aspects of my life for me. for instance, my birth. i had no say in who my parents are, or when i was born (and this is intentionally leaving out all the metaphysical rhetoric about my soul choosing a body and all that). if i cannot control the circumstances of my creation in this existence, i cannot ever say that i have truly free will, for true free will must extend even into those situations that set us in this world.
now, that being said, there are things that affect my entire life- my gender, race, ethnicity, etc. all these things are out of my control both in creation and impact on my life. however, these uncontrollables give rise to ancillary controllables. in other words, although my race, gender and parents may limit my choices, they do not determine the outcome. even a poor black boy from south-central can become a successful businessman if he makes the choices along the way to make it happen (likely, maybe not, but possible, definitely)
now, as for the choice v non-choice issue, not to choose is to choose. as cryptic as it may seem, non-action is to choose other than action, and is therefore a choice.
