Free will is an illusion

I have to commend my opponent for quoting Anthony Burgess, (one of my faves) however I must point out that the quote was taken entirely out of context because it was more of a political message, and if you read between the lines of that particular quote you may come to the conclusion that it's a very libertarian point (clockwork orange had a libertarian message). Mr. Burgess was simply pointing out that governments like to make people feel like they have a say in how government is run and it is obvious that he doesn't believe people do have a real say, but that doesn't mean he felt that people couldn't or shouldn't have a say in governmental policy. It was more of an observation on how governments conduct themselves and less an argument against free will. Personally, if I were trying to make an argument against free will, Burgess would not make my shortlist of people to quote, but hey it's your argument and you have the free will to conduct it in your own manner!!!! (tee hee, tee hee) It seems to me that my opponents argument is basically stating that since we cannot control the circumstances that surround us, then we must not have free will. I still have yet to read anything that convinces me that the process of observation, computation, and then ultimately reaction, does not belong solely to the beholder. I don't yet see any metaphysical evidence that shows me how or why the process from observation to reaction is not under our control. I disagree with my opponent that we cannot dictate what impulses arise in our consciousness. Perhaps we might not seem to be able to control our impulses, but it is us who put the information (emotion) in our brain that made us act impulsive to begin with. Lets say the rock I spoke about did indeed hit the newborn, then the emotions attached to the horrible event are stored in the childs brain for the child to reference in the future, and anytime the child encounters an event that seems similar to the child, then the child is reminded of the emotion he/she felt during the first incident, but the childs emotions are not what causes the child to react. It would be the choice of the child to act or react, or not act at all. It is us who does the work of observing, processing and storing the emotional information that we use in our everyday lives, but our emotions do not and cannot control us. Emotions are a complex system of synapses at work in conjunction with fluids being sent throughout the body, it's nothing more than our sense of touch, but we tend to attach pleasant or unpleasant or neutral additudes on those emotions, but those emotions cannot control whether we want to run in terror, or just sit and do nothing. Higher self awareness is not just something you read about in those creepy church pamphlets about how the world is going to end tomorrow, it's a legitimate psychological theory, and it deals with the idea that just the fact that we realize our emotions do not control us, may help us to have a better understanding of ourselves as individuals. If you find the time to read up on it, give it a looksey, it's an interesting topic! http://psychology.iresearchnet.com... My opponent asks what I think it means to act reasonably. I guess I have to admit that I didn't have a particular definition in mind when I used the word. I guess I would reason that reason can only take place with time, the more time we have to make "logical" decisions based off of observation, the more "reasonable" a choice may seem to be. Of course what one might consider to be reasonable, others may not, the reasonable or logical decisions pertain only to ones self. My opponent asks why I like to act reasonably or not and why is reason valued. That's a tough one to answer because I don't value reason over impulse or vice versa. I have my own emotional reference table, based off of situations and observations unique to me so far as I can see, and it was I who did the work of enduring the circumstances that created those emotions and it was I who stored the information and I am the one who can use the information if I choose to do so. If I were to endure a situation unlike any I've ever had, it will be me who will choose to act reasonably or impulsively or irrationally or do nothing. Thank You, and have a FABULOUS day!!!