Our Ability to Choose

The ultimate distinction between man and animals is not that man is more intelligent, but that animals are creatures that have no choice over their behaviour. They must do whatever their bodies demand. They cannot choose what they should do. Man has the ability of self-control, to choose one's behaviour, even in defiance of physical urges.

If a person loses one's ability to choose and is dominated by urges one cannot control, one is indeed an addict. Losing the ability to choose is losing the uniqueness of being a human being, and robs one of the dignity of being human. We pride ourselves on liberty and view slavery as evil because it dehumanizes a person. And that is exactly what happens when we relinquish our ability to choose.