Spirituality, Religion, it's all bullshit....

[PornoDoggy]

Originally Posted by sarettah

Is a decision an "action" ?

If you make a decision (any decision) are there consequences ?

If you fail to make a decision (which is by default making a decision) are there consequences ?

Yes, the laws of motion can be applied to decisions.

A decision is not an action.

Deciding I need coffee from the store does not get the coffee here.

[sarettah]

Originally Posted by PornoDoggy

A decision is not an action.

Deciding I need coffee from the store does not get the coffee here.

The logical conclusion of the decision "I need coffee from the store" is to somehow put your body/mind/whatever into motion to obtain the coffee from the store, not getting the coffee.

If you do not decide that you need coffee then the logical conclusion is that you will not get into motion to obtain the coffee and if in fact there was no coffee in your pantry then you would end up out of coffee.

So, in fact each decision is an action and each action produces a reaction.

action: decision - I need coffee from the store.
reaction: body/mind goes into motion to obtain coffee.

action: decision - I will use the car to go to the store to get the coffee.
reaction - grab car keys and head for the door.

etc etc so on so forth ad infinitum....

[OldJeff]

Originally Posted by sarettah

action: decision - I need coffee from the store.
reaction: body/mind goes into motion to obtain coffee.

action: decision - I will use the car to go to the store to get the coffee.
reaction - grab car keys and head for the door.

etc etc so on so forth ad infinitum....

Nope your reactions are the actions in these statements

[sarettah]

Originally Posted by OldJeff

Nope your reactions are the actions in these statements

Au contraire, the decision was the action. To make the decisions all sorts of electrons flowed across synapses to form the thoughts. That is the action. The reaction to the thought process is taking the step that the decision calls for.

[Trev]

Originally Posted by sarettah

Au contraire, the decision was the action. To make the decisions all sorts of electrons flowed across synapses to form the thoughts. That is the action. The reaction to the thought process is taking the step that the decision calls for.

You really are an argumentative old shit aren't you.

[OldJeff]

Originally Posted by sarettah

Au contraire, the decision was the action. To make the decisions all sorts of electrons flowed across synapses to form the thoughts. That is the action. The reaction to the thought process is taking the step that the decision calls for.

By this statement the decision must be the reaction of the electrons flowing.

[MorganGrayson]

"There are more things in heaven and in earth than are spoken of in your philosophy, Horatio."
~Shakespeare

[sarettah]

Originally Posted by OldJeff

By this statement the decision must be the reaction of the electrons flowing.

Did the thought cause the flow, or did the flow cause the thought ?

Or neither ?



Cogito ergo sum Or Sum ergo Cogito ?

[PornoDoggy]

Originally Posted by sarettah

The logical conclusion of the decision "I need coffee from the store" is to somehow put your body/mind/whatever into motion to obtain the coffee from the store, not getting the coffee.

If you do not decide that you need coffee then the logical conclusion is that you will not get into motion to obtain the coffee and if in fact there was no coffee in your pantry then you would end up out of coffee.

So, in fact each decision is an action and each action produces a reaction.

action: decision - I need coffee from the store.
reaction: body/mind goes into motion to obtain coffee.

action: decision - I will use the car to go to the store to get the coffee.
reaction - grab car keys and head for the door.

etc etc so on so forth ad infinitum....

A decision is a mental process (I need coffee).

An action is a physical process (I go get coffee).

The decision has no impact UNLESS you take action.

If a decision was an action, I would have lost 75 pounds and no longer consume tobacco products.

I have made the decision that I need to loose weight many times. I have made the decision that I need to quit smoking many times.

My failure to take subsequent actions to effect those changes does not negate the decision.

The decision that you need coffee has an impact on no one.

The action of going to get coffee can impact many people. If, for example, you run over a cop in a crosswalk the impact of your actions (leaving the house, starting the car, blah blah blah) will ripple around you.

[MorganGrayson]

Originally Posted by PornoDoggy

A decision is a mental process (I need coffee).

An action is a physical process (I go get coffee).

The decision has no impact UNLESS you take action.

If a decision was an action, I would have lost 75 pounds and no longer consume tobacco products.

I have made the decision that I need to loose weight many times. I have made the decision that I need to quit smoking many times.

My failure to take subsequent actions to effect those changes does not negate the decision.

The decision that you need coffee has an impact on no one.

The action of going to get coffee can impact many people. If, for example, you run over a cop in a crosswalk the impact of your actions (leaving the house, starting the car, blah blah blah) will ripple around you.

*writer tip toeing into the fray*
You all have excellent points, but I believe I'm siding with sarettah on this one. Why? I put the reasons in bold. The verb you used. You "made" a decision. An action. You even referred to the actual dieting as "subsequent actions." Not *the* action, another action. There is quite a point to actions being only in the physical world, but I think it's too narrow a definition.

[PornoDoggy]

Originally Posted by MorganGrayson

*writer tip toeing into the fray*
You all have excellent points, but I believe I'm siding with sarettah on this one. Why? I put the reasons in bold. The verb you used. You "made" a decision. An action. You even referred to the actual dieting as "subsequent actions." Not *the* action, another action. There is quite a point to actions being only in the physical world, but I think it's too narrow a definition.

You did a good job of identifying the crux of the problem: "There is quite a point to actions being only in the physical world, but I think it's too narrow a definition."

I think the distinction between mental and physical is of the utmost importance.

Deciding I need to lose weight is a mental process. Medically, I have a doctor who tells me that every time I see him, so the decision is based on scientific fact.

I accept the suggestion of the doctor. It is true that I need to lose weight.

It is very true that the logical next step is to take subsequent actions to accomplish that.

But I'm a human being. What is logical is not always what I will do.

Thus, the decision means nothing without action.

[sarettah]

Originally Posted by PornoDoggy

You did a good job of identifying the crux of the problem: "There is quite a point to actions being only in the physical world, but I think it's too narrow a definition."

I think the distinction between mental and physical is of the utmost importance.

Deciding I need to lose weight is a mental process. Medically, I have a doctor who tells me that every time I see him, so the decision is based on scientific fact.

I accept the suggestion of the doctor. It is true that I need to lose weight.

It is very true that the logical next step is to take subsequent actions to accomplish that.

But I'm a human being. What is logical is not always what I will do.

Thus, the decision means nothing without action.

Ah but you have not made the decision or actually accepted his word. If you truly accepted that you NEED to lose weight then you would make the decisions necessary to make that result happen. Since you are only giving the doctor lip service and don't really think you NEED to lose weight then you have subsequently made the decision to not take the additional steps necessary to make the weight loss happen.

[MorganGrayson]

Originally Posted by PornoDoggy

You did a good job of identifying the crux of the problem: "There is quite a point to actions being only in the physical world, but I think it's too narrow a definition."

I think the distinction between mental and physical is of the utmost importance.

Deciding I need to lose weight is a mental process. Medically, I have a doctor who tells me that every time I see him, so the decision is based on scientific fact.

I accept the suggestion of the doctor. It is true that I need to lose weight.

It is very true that the logical next step is to take subsequent actions to accomplish that.

But I'm a human being. What is logical is not always what I will do.

Thus, the decision means nothing without action.

PD, what you have done now is criticize the action and declare it invalid...not prove that it wasn't an action. It was an action lacking the necessary subsequent actions.

[sarettah]

Originally Posted by PornoDoggy

A decision is a mental process (I need coffee).

An action is a physical process (I go get coffee).

The decision has no impact UNLESS you take action.

If a decision was an action, I would have lost 75 pounds and no longer consume tobacco products.

I have made the decision that I need to loose weight many times. I have made the decision that I need to quit smoking many times.

My failure to take subsequent actions to effect those changes does not negate the decision.

The decision that you need coffee has an impact on no one.

The action of going to get coffee can impact many people. If, for example, you run over a cop in a crosswalk the impact of your actions (leaving the house, starting the car, blah blah blah) will ripple around you.

You may have decided that you need to lose weight which would be one of the first actions taken in the process. You subsequently decided, for whatever reason, not to take the additional action necessary to lose the weight. However, if you never decided that you need to lose the weigth, then you wouldn't lose it unless of course as the result of some other action such as a virus infection where you don't eat.

The decision itself is an action as much as anything else we do.

While we are alive we are in constant motion, we are incapable of NOT taking action every nanosecond that we live and breath.