The idea that we, as individuals and as a collective, aren't in control of our destiny is a scary one, but one we must consider. I will shortly outline my thoughts on why it may not be true, but first we must define Free Will, which is being able to act unencumbered by external forces; we freely make all our own decisions.
There is a well known theory of the multiverse, which is that there exist an infinite number of universes in which things are much the same, albeit with differences on a small scale - the decision to go to this university or that, to ask out a girl or not, etc. This doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Why, if I have an alternate self in an alternate universe, would I make different decisions? If the constraints, pro and cons, levels of willpower and so forth, are exactly the same, I would make the same decision in universe 2 as I would in universe 1.
History is made up of untold billions of events, not just human but also physical - earthquakes, solar events etc - all of which would be made the same way. The laws of physics are unchanging and consistent, with ultimate knowledge anything and everything can be predicted. If history unfolds under pre-determined conditions, then it follows that the present - right now, me, you, everything - is unfolding in a predetermined way.
Even the decision to act spontaneously is a result of thinking about free will, and those thoughts are triggered by something else. We can do what we like, but we can't choose to do what we like.
However, is any of this important? It still feels like we're in control of our destinies, and the choices we make are down to our own personality traits and characteristics; it is our own unique nebulous consciousnesses that govern our actions (even if those traits are themselves pre-determined).
Someone prove me wrong please, I don't like this. Also this should also be much longer, but I've a seminar to attend.
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