Simple debate: Free will or determinism?

I have recently (although for a long time) got interested in this topic after reading up for my course. This is not for an essay or coursework or whatnot. So I hope to start a proper debate on this topic of free will versus determinism with the Fluther community.

Just some rules that I would hope to enforce (despite having no power to).

- Please provide evidence. Anecdotes are fine, scientific research is even better, but what I don’t want is just people’s feelings on the subject unless they have a ground to base it on. Philosophical reasoning is also fine.
– No disrespecting other people’s views. Each is entitled to their own.

I shall start. I am a hardcore determist. I believe that everything has a cause and is built up by billions of chains such as Pavlovian conditioning. I reject ideas of a soul as how does a soul interact with biological processes in our brains? I believe everything is predetermined and that consciousness is just an illusion produced by the access of mental faculties such as memory, executive function, S-Rs etc etc.

Evidence to support my thoughts:

Everything we see in the universe appears to be rational and predictable. For example when you jump, gravity will always pull you back down. It is inconsistent to think of the human mind as an exception.

I will input more at a later date as its late here and I want to allow for room for other people to contribute to the discussion.