I've tended to the comparison with (whatever we think we know about) the 'Arrow of Time'. It seems as reasonable as it is intuitive [Yeah.. I know..] that causality is at least as useful an idea as are Newton's laws.. for mere astrophysical navigation, nearby.

But we are speaking here of the axiomatic closed-System, aren't we? Physics must deal with at least some umm encapsulation.. into a field of references. I doubt that we disagree at this level -- except that you know much more about the entire topic than I (!) (Yes, I think I sorta grokked some of your what-ifs a while back.. re "conservation of energy" -- and what we might suppose next, if we supended that a little bit.)

Where I find causality to interfere with proper reasoning (and esp. Reasoning) - is when we attempt to apply it to human events, all of which actually take place within the individual or collective wetware. There is no possibility of circumscribing That 'field of reference'. IMhO. Maybe above is a prime example: "the 'cause' of criminal mentation" / or criminally inhuman mentation? say. A most unsatisfying pursuit.



Ashton