I think people were FATED not to ever know the answer to this question.
*shifty eyes*
Seriously though, I think the idea of fate is as improbable as the idea of a god (and apologies if anyone feels strongly otherwise). I just can't wrap my mind around the notion that everything that could ever happen is already determined. What a waste of potential! That would just be silly.
I think of it in terms of paths. Every person at every moment has a finite number of paths before them, and theirs is the choice of what road to take. This is true for every decision, and only after making them can we know the effects of what we do. I think I started thinking along those lines after reading Frank Herbert's "Dune"; Paul Muad'dib's idea of "seeing the possible future" makes a lot of sense. He could only see for certain as far as the next crucial decision. Anything beyond that was just a possibility of what might be. Sort of like the future you see in Galadriel's Mirror, you know?
I think the whole thing is a very cool idea.
