Freedom as Structured Availability: 6 Debunking Freedom Myths

Even after seeing that freedom is structured availability and choice is local re-cutting, lingering intuitions still tug at the mind. We continue to believe in myths of libertarian escape, random self-determination, or mystical agency. This post exposes these illusions and aligns all remaining intuitions with relational ontology.

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Myth 1 — Freedom as Absence of Constraint

Classical thought imagines freedom as acting in a vacuum: no rules, no pressures, no structure. Relational ontology shows this is incoherent:

• All actualisation occurs within constraints.

• Freedom is the range of minimally costly options, not a metaphysical escape.

• Constraints are enabling, not restricting.

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Myth 2 — Choice Requires Hidden Will

We tend to imagine a “will” that chooses independently of circumstances. Relationally:

• Apparent agency emerges from local re-cutting in the constraint network.

• No hidden faculty is needed; “decisions” are actualisations along feasible paths.

• The sense of a self that chooses is a narrative overlay, not a metaphysical entity.

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Myth 3 — Randomness Equals Freedom

Random outcomes are sometimes invoked as “proof” of freedom. In reality:

• Randomness reflects densities of feasible paths or complexity in relational dependencies, not external arbitrariness.

• Apparent indeterminacy is structural, not metaphysical.

• Freedom is about choice among feasible paths, not producing random outcomes.

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Myth 4 — Responsibility Requires Agents

Even if we accept relational freedom, the intuition remains that ethical responsibility requires metaphysical agents. Yet:

• Responsibility is traceable to nodes that materially modulate feasible paths.

• Attribution of accountability is relational, not metaphysical.

• Ethics works naturally within structured availability.

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Why These Myths Persist

• Cognitive shortcuts favour linear narratives, agents, and pushes.

• Classical education reinforces metaphysical intuitions about “independent will.”

• Even sophisticated thinkers often conflate narrative ease with ontological reality.

Recognising and discarding these myths is the final step in fully internalising relational freedom.

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Key Takeaways

1. Freedom is emergent from relational structure, not metaphysical escape.

2. Choice is local actualisation along minimally costly paths.

3. Apparent agents and libertarian intuitions are narrative interpretations overlaid on constraint networks.

4. Responsibility and ethics are relationally grounded, fully compatible with structured freedom.