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Inverse View
It is not the case that Causes must temporally precede their effects, so an effect cannot explain why its cause occurred without vicious circularity.
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Reasons For
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1.
In physics, fundamental equations are time-symmetric; temporal asymmetry emerges only at macro scales, not from causation itself.
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2.
Teleological explanation (future goal explaining present action) is perfectly coherent in rational agency without temporal paradox or circularity.
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3.
Explanation and causation may differ: we can explain why a cause occurred by citing its effects without claiming effects caused the cause itself.
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Reasons Against
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Reason against
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1.
Temporal order is fundamental to causation; if effects could precede causes, causation would be logically indistinguishable from mere correlation.
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2.
Backward explanation (effect explaining cause) violates asymmetry: we can affect the future but not the past, so causal explanation must respect this direction.
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3.
Allowing effects to explain causes creates infinite regress: effect E1 explains cause C, but then what explains E1? Vicious circularity becomes inevitable.
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