R.E. Lee also asked:

Seeing that there is no human action, but rather reaction and since only matter (mechanically) acts, to
which we, in turn, react, to what extent is it possible, as a creature, to reactin a purely logical,
objective fashion when reactions,it seems, stem from an instinctive or (the evolution of instincts,
emotion) emotional determinate? That is to say, will humanity ever be capable of making purely
rational decisions motivated simply by reason or logic itself?

If so, can it be surmised that the emotive-brain (the hypothalamic region as it is called presently) will
atrophy, thus causing the "atrophy" of religion with its imaginary command over the cosmos, and
inversely the development of science with a real command over our environment and our fate?

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Let us assume, for the sake of argument, that determinism holds universally. In pondering your
question, certain physical processes of cause and effect are going on in my brain. In a possible
universe exactly like this one up until the present moment, the very next thought that occurs to
'Geoffrey Klempner' in that universe is the same thought as the thought that occurs to Geoffrey
Klempner in this universe. Given the total state of my brain at any one time, and all the causal
influences brought to bear on my brain state from my body and external environment, then the state
of my brain at all other times is determined. It is impossible for my thoughts to deviate in the slightest
degree from the tracks determinism has laid down.

Does it follow that I cannot think rationally and logically, or that 'rational' or 'logical' thought is nothing
more than mere illusion?

The simple answer is, No. The world of truth, reason and logic, of argument, justification, criticism and
all the concepts that fall under the heading of norms of rationalityis no less real for being realizedin
blind, irrational, unthinking physical processes. What we are talking about are two metaphysically
distinct levels of description, the personal and the sub-personal, or the human world and the physical
world.

Emotions, interests, desires have a physical basis in the way our brains and bodies are constructed,
in the way that human beings have evolved. There are, no doubt, interesting explanations to uncover,
for example, why sex is such fun, or why people like to fight and so on. But it would be absurd to
claim that insofar as human beings are motivated by emotions, interests, desires, they are irrational!
A being that did not have any things that it wantedor that movedit to act, would do nothing at all! It
would not even have the motivation to sit and ponder the problems of philosophy.

Emotions, interests and desires appear in the personal or human world, the world governed by norms
of rationality, as reasons for action. I fully agree that human beings are not fully rational, perhaps they
are not as rational as they could be. (Studying philosophy is an excellent way of training and
strengthening one's rational side.) It is a deep, and interesting philosophical question how we account
for failures of rationality, indeed, how such failures can be coherently described.For example, the
problem that Aristotle first raised, of how to account for weakness of the will.

As hard as we try to conform to the norms of rationality, it remains a plain fact that human beings are
capable of errors of judgement, just as we are capable of errors in physical co-ordination. A point of
logic can trip you up just as easily as a banana skin.

Geoffrey Klempner