Critical essay in the Scientific American re Do We Have Free Will?

The opening gambit of this essay is based on a true life case of a man who was holiday in Wales with his wife. They were disturbed by some motor cyclists. They therefore relocated their in a different site.

That night the husband had a dream in which the bikers had broken into their van. In a dream he had confused a biker with his wife and he strangled him her to death.

In his trial, his case was abetted by the fact he was known to be a sleep walker. It was argued that his actions was involuntary. He was found not guilty.

In all generalizations are their respective exceptions

that prove the rule.

Based on this maxim, the question is this:

Do human beings have the ability to decide to do or not do 

in the ever changing contexts of their lives?

By our living and self-witnessed experience:

Do we and can we affirm that 

the answer is in the affirmative for the above question.

If it is in the negative, then we are all mythic and mystical automatons and we cannot ever be held responsible for anything we do, be it wondrously beautiful and unbelievably divine or heinously evil and monstrously wicked!

The critical question then becomes:

Can we affirm that we are able to think for ourselves and for others 

whether it be for good or for evil?

Was St. Francis of Assisi or Adolf Hitler byproducts of the incredible machinations of mental operations that were utterly beyond their awareness and control?

Speaking for Jennifer and myself and for the entire field of NSP, we believe that human beings do have free will.. However there are exceptions to this generalization.