One of the most fascinating paradoxes I've ever come across is that of the poison gambit. For lack of a more standard name, I've chosen that one. Or, if you like, premeditated toxicity. Or perhaps better yet, "Who Wants To Die A Millionaire?"
It's a sort of contest. You will win a million dollars (or pounds or the currency of your choice) if you can simply intend to drink a toxic substance - a poison guaranteed to take your life. Note carefully the specific phrasing used - you don't have to actually drink it. You only have to intend to drink it. The contest might therefore involve some sort of waiver for legal purposes saying that you agree to drink the poison and that if you do, the host company cannot be held liable for the consequences of your own intent and actions based on that intent. The exact details of this are unimportant.
The paradox is, can you intend to drink the poison, collect the money, and then later change your mind and not drink it, thus living on and being able to enjoy your reward? It's a very interesting thought experiment into free will. I believe I've resolved the paradox.
The answer is this: NO. You cannot actually intend to drink the poison, then later, decide not to. If you did this, your intention to drink the poison to begin with would not be valid, and your winnings would be forfeit. On a positive note, you wouldn't have to drink the poison and could continue on happily with your life (one million dollars poorer, nevertheless). Assuming there was a lie detector or that the contest had some other way to verify your real intent, you would be completely unable to "cheat the system" and lie about your intent to drink the poison.
However! It is actually possible to intend to drink the poison, claim the reward, and later, not drink the poison and live on to celebrate it. Yes it is! And this does not contradict what I have said in the previous paragraph. There is a subtle difference. It's true you can't actually decide on your own to not drink the poison, later. To claim the reward, you have to truly intend to drink the poison, and with every fiber of your being, know that you are going to drink it and die from it. However, there are two ways to get out of it - one improbable, and one reliable but dependent on the rules of the contest.
First, the unlikely way: something unforeseen has to happen, something you could not have predicted and that you had no hope of stumbling into. This event must somehow change your mind about whether you wanted to drink the poison or not. For instance, perhaps after going through a divorce, you felt alone and became severely depressed. You thought you could at least give your kids a better future by providing well for them, though you wouldn't live to see it. Then, after the contest is over, but before you drink the poison, along comes a stunning, single woman into your life and you fall in love and are no longer depressed, and you actually don't want to die anymore. You find a reason to keep on living. This would not break the rules of the contest, and your finding love would be a triple bonus: you now have the promise of a happy relationship, a lot of money, and a bright future with no obligation to actually drink the poison. You were sincere in your intent, because you had no idea such a great event would happen to you and so drastically change your outlook on life.
The other method is the cheap shot. This may not be possible depending on the specific rules of the contest, but let's assume that you are not told the specific date on which you must actually drink the poison. When you intend to drink the poison, you must fully and completely agree to drink the poison at some point in your future, barring any event that kills you in another manner. In which case, the winnings would not be forfeit - remember, you only need to intend to drink the poison - the actual drinking is merely an extremely likely consequence of your intent to drink it.
Have you already spotted the loophole in your mind's eye? You can intend to drink the poison, claim your winnings, and then indefinitely postpone the actual drinking of it. You fully intend to drink it, but since the actual date was not specified, you simply intend on drinking it so near the end of your life that its fatal result means almost nothing. Then again, if you wait long enough, you may actually die unexpectedly before you even had a chance to drink the poison. Either way, you're practically scot free. The only real caveat is that you do have to truly intend to drink the poison at some later date!
This loophole makes an interesting question of intent - how do you define an intention? Is it immutable as first conceived in your mind, or are intentions a malleable substance that can be formed and shaped on a whim? Food for thought, or at least for another post.
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