Libertarianism

In philosophy departments, "libertarianism" means the free will position that humans are genuine originators of action—neither mechanistically determined nor randomly acting. Meanwhile, in political discourse, it describes minimal-state capitalism and individual liberty. This collision of meanings creates endless confusion at interdisciplinary conferences, where a metaphysician discussing agent causation might be asked about tax policy.

Here's the libertarian free will paradox: if your choices aren't caused by prior events, aren't they just random? And if they're random, how are they really "yours"? Critics argue that libertarian free will requires being an "unmoved mover" of your own actions—you must somehow cause your decisions without those decisions being caused by anything about you, including your character, desires, or reasoning. It's like trying to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps, metaphysically speaking.

Philosopher Roderick Chisholm proposed that persons themselves—not their neurons, not their beliefs, not prior events—are the irreducible causes of free actions. This "agent causation" theory treats you as a substance with genuine causal powers, more like Aristotle's unmoved mover than a billiard ball in a deterministic chain. The view requires a controversial metaphysics where persons exist as entities beyond their physical parts, making free will scientifically puzzling but phenomenologically satisfying.

Benjamin Libet's famous experiments showed brain activity preceding conscious awareness of decisions by about 350 milliseconds, suggesting your brain "decides" before you know it. Libertarians have scrambled to respond: maybe the readiness potential isn't the real decision, or perhaps conscious veto power preserves freedom. The debate reveals how libertarianism stakes everything on a mysterious moment of self-originating choice that neuroscience keeps failing to locate.

Philosopher Robert Kane argues that rare "self-forming actions" during moments of genuine inner conflict create the bedrock of libertarian freedom. Imagine choosing between career ambition and family care while truly torn—Kane suggests quantum indeterminacy in your neurons allows you to determine which value wins. You don't need every choice to be undetermined, just enough pivotal ones to shape your character, which then determines later choices. It's libertarianism on a budget: free will where it counts most.

If libertarianism is false and our actions are ultimately caused by factors beyond our control—genes, upbringing, brain chemistry—then punishing criminals seems like punishing someone for getting struck by lightning. The legal system implicitly assumes libertarian freedom when it distinguishes between acts done "of your own free will" versus under duress or mental illness. This philosophical position isn't academic: it's embedded in how we assign praise, blame, and prison sentences every single day.