The basic idea about this argument is that, since our actions are determined by our desires in which we can’t control, we do not have free will. My aim for this paper, is not to refute the argument but prove that our actions are not only solely based on desires. In §1 of the paper, I will present the argument and its premises. In §2, I will critically assess the argument. Lastly, in §3 I will address the various objections that arises against my criticism.
Free will is not contingently absent but rather it is merely impossible because a person action is control by their desires. Therefore, one can never act freely because one have no control over one’s desires. This can be reconstructed into indented premises as follow:
- (DA1) what you choose to do is always determined by your desires
- (DA2) you can’t control your desires
- (DA3) so what you choose to do is always determined by something you can’t control
- (DA4) if so then you never act freely
- (DA5) so you never act freely
Most of us are certain that we have free-will because the majority of the time it seems like we are paving our own path and choosing our own actions; however, this is false. Every part of our actions are determined by our desires. To fully understand this argument, we have to understand the meaning of desire. Desire is what drives our actions; it is a strong feeling that we evoke when we want or wish to have something. I am not writing this paper to disapprove this argument, instead, my goal for this paper is to critically access the premises within this argument and prove that desires, along with nature and nurture responses are the motivations behind our everyday actions.
Section 2: Nature and nurture
I will now present my standpoint on the argument. I agree with the conclusion that we never act freely however, I do not think that all our actions are driven by only desires. I will break this section down into two categories: nurture and nature. First I will address the issue of nurture then, I will talk about nature and how it affects our ability to act freely.
Our biological needs is a factor that drives us to act a certain way. Sensation of thirst and hunger can dominate our thoughts and take control of our actions. These are essentials that we have completely no control over. In fact, it is our brain is transmitting messages to our body to ensure that our body is getting enough nutrients. When you drink or eat, you are acting based on your body demands and needs not your own. For examples, even before babies can speak and is allow to make their own decisions, they have biological drives that need to be fulfilled. Babies tend to cry and make a fuss when they are hungry or thirsty until they are fed. Same with us, we seek for food and drink when we are placed under the same condition. This proves that our actions are not control by us, instead it is subconsciously being control by our body and the body, therefore, we have no free-will. Drives like the urge to sleep, are also controlled by a small portion of the brain called the hypothalamus. All these together just proves how the brain controls our most basic drives and not necessarily our desires.
The second argument that I will be making in support of the first, because they both goes hand in hand, is the fact that nature also influences our actions. We live in a society where reputation and how other people perceives us is such a huge thing. Everyone needs to have a specific reputation in able to thrive in this world and to achieve that ultimate goal, it takes multiple steps. You need to fit into the social norm so you are not the oddball in the crowd and by doing so, you need to dress a certain way and have certain products. For example, if a new iphone comes out, you need to get a somewhat up to date or the latest version. You don’t want to be the person with the old nokia flip phone because it proves to society that you are not powerful. This can be perceived as a desire because you want the latest phone so you can conform but in reality, you are proving to society that you have the money, and if you have money, you gain more respect in society. It is no longer a want but a need to survive in this world. You keep acquiring things that you think you desire but in fact it is all an ultimate goal to get you to the top and succeed.
Section 3: Rebuttals against my argument
In this section of the paper, I will address how someone with an opposing view would critically respond to my arguments. The first way someone can deny this approach is by saying that the nature stance falls under the same category as desire. If we were to look at the examples of iphones and fitting into the social norms, it would definitely fall under the same category as needs and our needs is the desires that we ultimately cannot control. If we see someone with a new phone, then we want to update to the latest version because we want to fit in not because we need it. Wanting to fit in is a desire, therefore, the argument is invalid.
My response to this criticism is that the needs for acceptance is a basic human instinct. Conforming to society is a norm that bonds people together and we seek that similarity in others around us in order to feel secure and recognized. The way we present ourselves in society is what people perceives of us; this is how you survive in society. Money and good reputation is what get you through life, therefore, conforming to society is not considered a desire, it is an essential to get you through life.
Another way someone can respond is by bringing up the topic of charity. When someone does an act of kindness and donate to a charity, it is a desire that they have to present themselves as a good person. Although it is true that the idea of being a good person can be the drive to doing charity, we cannot automatically connect it with desires. Yes, it is true that people have selfish motives when it comes to charity work and it is mainly to make themselves feel good. However, this also goes back to the past argument section of my paper. By doing charity work, they are creating a good reputation for themselves. By doing so, this will leave a good impression to those around them and society. Charity also builds connection and this is how someone can be successful in life. This is the ultimate goal that mostly everyone strive to achieve. Overall, our actions are not solely driven by desires; rather they are driven nature, nurture and desires.
Airport Security After 11 September
Many people do not mind waiting in lines to get food, or lining up around the outside of a store during black Friday. But, why do people get upset for waiting in line for a short period of time to go through airport security measures that are in place to protect them. “TSA incorporates unpredictable security measures, both seen and unseen, to accomplish our transportation security mission” (TSA). Even though airport security is meant to protect passengers and provide safety, many passengers still complain about how the security is intrusive and irrelevant. Airport security and technology should be increased based on terrorism that keeps occuring in the aviation transport industry. It does not matter whether people think it is unnecessary or not, it is for the protection of them and the nation.
Every september, Americans reflect on the events that happened on september 11, 2000. On this day, Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners and crashed the planes into both the Trade Centers, the pentagon, and the other was crashed before it could reach the United States capital. This day changed the history of our country, but many people still do not understand the reason for the TSA and why it was created. The sole reason the TSA was created was to stop events similar to this in the future. “Two months after 9/11, the Bush administration created the Transportation Security Agency, ordering it to hire and train enough security officers to staff the nation’s 450 airports within a year” (Mann). The creation of this federal agency is clearly constructed to ensure the safety in the nation’s transportation system while also bringing security to the people traveling and the industry. “By the end of 2002, TSA had hired, trained, and deployed nearly 60,000 employees. They included doctors, lawyers, business owners, veterans, recent graduates, retirees, and countless other groups of Americans who together assumed responsibility for security at over 400 of the nation’s airports” (NMAH). The creation of this made it the largest mobilization of the federal government since WWII.
The TSA has imposed new tactics used to detect threats based on the many incidences that the TSA keeps coming across. An incident made by Richard Reid in 2002, caused the formation of bomb screening technology. Richard Reid had made a show bomb attempt by using matches to ignite an explosive device inside of his shoes. The TSA was able to stop this man by checking the shoes and finding the matches. The historical stop made by the federal agency was considered the next biggest threat after 9/11, which was only about four months after the big attack. This act brought up research and creation of explosive detection systems. The TSA reached a crucial point in transportation security by deploying detection systems for bombs, these machines by putting luggage on a conveyor belt and searching them using x-ray images.
“According to the Department of Homeland Security, 730 million people travel on passenger jets every year, while more than 700 million pieces of their baggage are screened for explosives and other dangerous items” (Tyson & Grabianowski). This is a high number of luggage that would not have been scanned before the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Another way the TSA has made traveling in a plane safer, is by fortifying the cockpit. The idea started in 2003 when all commercial planes were required to reinforce the doors. The new doors can now protect from interference, small-arms fire, and explosive devices. Not just the cockpit has been reinforced, but also the pilot inside of it.
The TSA has created new laws in security and federal law enforcement jobs to ensure safe flight flight while the plane is in the air. In 2002, the TSA started the Federal Flight Deck Program, which started training pilots to carry firearms. The pilots are not the only ones who are trained to carry firearms, but also some flights may have Federal Air Marshals aboard. In 2006, the Air Marshals were created and are armed federal law enforcement personnel who are deployed on commercial flights to detect and deter terrorism against transportation. The TSA has also formed restrictions on liquids. At first, the TSA had banned all liquids entering the terminal. “A month after the implementation of the original liquids ban, TSA amends its rules governing liquids in passenger carry-on baggage and allows airline passengers to carry liquids, gels, and aerosols in containers of only 3.4 ounces or less in a single, clear, resealable 1-quart plastic bag” (TSA). In the same period, the TSA also raises ID standards standards. The TSA made additional random screenings of employees, more canine patrol, and stricter identity verification processes. Canine teams were trained for detecting explosives. The terrorist were now starting to load explosives by cargo instead of people. Terrorists started concealing IEDs in many cargo items, such as printer cartridges. Most of the cargo shipments containing explosives were from Yemen, and now the shipments have been suspended indefinitely.
The TSA has also made substantial progress in airport security technology. The newest technology that has been created is facial recognition systems. “While arriving in Washington Dulles International Airport after a flight from São Paulo, the man presented a genuine French passport as his ID. But the facial recognition system flagged the man’s face as not matching the passport photo. Officers then searched his person, as he grew “visibly nervous,” and found his real ID card from the Republic of Congo in his shoe” (Liao). Even though it is not in a lot of airports yet, it will eventually become used more widely in the future. It is reported that there is a total of fourteen airports using it. This system will help stop people from using fake identification and catching them before they can perform acts of terrorism during transportation. There are some people who tend to complain about everything going on in the world in current times.
Full-body scanners have been around for three years now, and are said to be the one of the most effective security practices today. “The full-body scanners used in all airports since May 2013 are called ‘millimeter wave’ machines, which bounce electromagnetic waves off the traveler to provide an animated image where a suspicious item might be located. The TSA no longer uses the backscatter scanners that produced near-naked images of travelers” (Jansen). Some travelers were complaining about privacy of the fully-body scanners and lawsuits were brought up against the TSA. The full-body scanners reveal a person’s body in a way the person does not want others to see, but it shows items that cannot be exposed by explosive-detective systems or dogs.
Radical Terrorism And 11 September
Introduction
Millions of people all over the world have become aware of the disastrous attack that occurred on September 11 in New York. The events inflicted a painfully clear image that we then “entered a period of history where states and even superpowers could be challenged in unorthodox ways” (Mannik, 2009, p. 151). Today, we find ourselves in a world where there is an ongoing War on Terror. Terrorism is an act of violence, whether domestic or international, which “is usually committed against non-combatants, and aimed to achieve behavioral change and political objectives by creating fear in a large population” (Doosje, 2016, p. 79). In recent years, various terrorist organizations, especially al-Qaeda and ISIS (The Islamic State of Iraq) have threatened world peace by conducting the most heinous actions and crimes, as well as murdering numerous innocent people (Dogan, 2015, p. 71).
Determining what drives people to terrorism is not exactly an easy task. Primarily, terrorists are not likely to volunteer for interviews or as experimental subjects, not to mention access to those deemed terrorists are not accessible to many. Additionally, to some, one group’s terrorist is another group’s freedom fighter (DeAngelis, 2009, p. 60). It is also a very complicated task to define terrorism, but absolutely necessary in order to progress an understanding of what it entails and to deal with it effectively (Mannik, 2009, p. 151). Broad connotations of politically, nationalistically, and religiously motivated organizations have claimed to have been involved in terrorism over the years, including but not limited to, right-wing and left-wing political groups, religious institutions, and revolutionaries. There are over 109 different definitions of terrorism, but along most lines it is an imbedded intolerance towards all views other than their own and “intolerance is the hallmark of extremist belief systems and terrorist behavior” (Martin, 2016, p. 25).
The word “terrorist” was first used in 1794 by a French philosopher who wanted to denounce Maximilien Robespierre’s Jacobin regime as a dictatorship. During the reign of Terror, which then began in 1793 and lasted a little over a year, Paris was governed by a committee who oversaw mass executions and public purges as part of the regime It was thereafter, often used when discussing the royalist rebellion and even in the description of the new French government called the Directory (Kellner, 2004, p. 44). However, although this term was often applied frequently in history, there is a distinct difference between revolutionary terror during the French Revolution and the terrorists from the attacks on September 11. The violence that ensued in 2001 was intended to annihilate Americans. There was no intention to attempt at changing our regime or politics. Revolutionary terror is aimed more at liberty and regime change (Wahnich, 2016, p. 108).
What encompasses the thought process of those who see it valid and right to commit heinous crimes and inflict pain on others? Most people do not realize or are puzzled to find out that terrorists who commit violent acts are not psychologically disturbed or “brainwashed” in the sense that we would believe. Generally, terrorists are not mentally ill, but rather a result of a component called radicalization, a process that can happen to anyone (Doosje et al., 2016, p. 80). Studies of terrorists are difficult to conduct do to a variety of differences between militant, political, and religious organizations, and are often comprised of very small sample sizes. Research has shown that there are customary psychological factors, which can lead people to join these organizations and take action (Penman, 2015, p. 1). Radicalization is “a process by which an individual or group comes to adopt increasingly extreme political, social, or religious ideals that reject or undermine contemporary ideas and expressions of freedom and choice” (Dogan, 2015, p. 71). When examining the role of radicalization, it is important to focus on the idea that although there are many different forms of radicalization who use varying methods to achieve their goals, these groups share significant characteristics (Doosje et al., 2016, p. 79).
This study is important to the field of criminology and criminal justice due to its violent and inevitable nature, as well as the large-scale security threat it imposes on society. By learning more about how this problem is affecting our nation’s criminal justice system, we can work towards solutions and bettering of this field. In the time period since 9/11, scholarly publications regarding terrorism have increased immensely by 400 percent (Aly & Striegher, 2012, p. 849). Within this trend, the process of terrorist activities has been developing focus, as well as various explanations of how individuals become involved in terrorist activities. There is an abundant of resources involving terrorism, but there needs to be more research done specifically on radical terrorism, in order to incorporate more advancements on battling this phenomenon.
I plan on conducting research to further understand the radicalization process and how this emerges into terrorism actions. Radicalists become increasingly motivated to use violent means against defined symbolic targets or out-groups, in order to fulfill political goals (Doosje et al., 2016, p. 79). Through my research, I want to express the fundamentals of emotional and psychological impacts that lead to radicalization and then towards terrorism. This study will investigate how an individual becomes a radical extremist and who is recruited. In addition, this study will explore how the process begins, including different psychological factors, as well as how radicalization and religion correlate. Finally, this research will incorporate information in regards to whether radical terrorism actually works and if radicals actually accomplish their goals in the form of terrorist activities. The implications of radicalization and how radicals become terrorists includes various entities and is fundamental to society’s understanding of violent terrorist activities.