Do we have any free choice about the future?

Question from the Internet:

“Is the future open?”

Actually, it isn’t. We exist in a lawful, deterministic Natural system with a relentless plan of development that has a predetermined final, most optimal state and a predetermined role, purpose for us all.

What is open is our own participation in this process.

We can continue developing blindly, following our inherently selfish, egoistic, individualistic, exploitative nature, and then the recurring vicious cycles, worsening crisis, and intolerable suffering will force us towards the role, purpose evolution has in store for us.

At the same time, we also received a unique human intellect from evolution that can help us critically assess our inherent program and then purposefully, consciously change, adapt it to Nature’s plan.

In this case, although the final state is sealed, we will still feel as if we chose, organized, built that state through our conscious, partnering participation in Natural development, becoming Nature’s only conscious, objective observers, partners.