I think they're playing a Bill Clinton on us. They're debating what the meaning of "is" is. The past was; the future will be; neither "is".
No, I'm actually taking it a step further than that.
Let me further narrow the definition of Now to mean "here and now," and define "present" to mean "all things that are happening outside of my perception at this moment in time."
Given these definitions, I am asserting that not only are the past and future illusions, but so is the present. This is not just equivocation on the meaning of the verb "to be."
What I'm saying is that your senses do not lie to you; however, your memory may very well lie, and so may your account of the past. Your senses do not assume things; however, your ego may very well make assumptions, especially in cases where your senses lack complete information. Your senses do not anticipate the future; however, your imagination may very well anticipate future events and possibilities.
Every part of your experience that is not part of the "here and now" is equally illusory.
Let me give an example:
Suppose you have an airline ticket to depart in a half-hour, and you are in a cab on the way to the airport. The plane is presumably on the concourse at your gate, and you are in a great hurry to catch it before it takes off. In this situation, your plane is in the "present," and is very real to you, and if you are distressed at your condition of lateness, that is very real to you as well.
Now, suppose that, unbeknownst to you, the plane is delayed and
hasn't even landed yet. Because you don't have that information, it is the illusory plane on the concourse that defines your reality, and the "actual" position of the plane has no bearing whatsoever on your experience
until you find out about it.
So, let's say that you call a friend at home, who looks up the status of the plane and tells you that the plane was delayed, hasn't even landed yet, and that you are in no danger of missing your flight at all. Your entire situation has changed. An entire plane was removed from the concourse in your head, and placed in the sky flying somewhere over the Arizona desert (or wherever you imagine it to be). You are no longer late, you can relax and stop yelling at the cab driver for driving so slow.
Now, let's assume that your friend was mistaken, and looked up the wrong flight number (or it was misreported), and as you pull up to the terminal, you find out that the plane was on time after all, and that you really
are late, and most likely going to miss your flight.
The point I'm trying to make is that what most people mistake for "reality" is really no more than a collection of stories, assumptions, prejudices, and projections. Some of these are "right," some are "wrong," and some are "close enough" to pass.
The Now, however, is of an entirely different nature. There are no assumptions in the now: there is only sensation, and intention, followed by more sensation, followed by another intention. In other words, free will.
I'm not saying at all that your idea is not useful to you.. In fact, I believe it is probably very useful.. but yeah.. it doesn't make it true.
