As far as metaphysical reality is concerned (omitting human actions from
consideration, for the moment), there are no “facts which happen to be but
could have been otherwise” as against “facts which must be.” There are only:
facts which are. . . . Since things are what they are, since everything
that exists possesses a specific identity, nothing in reality can occur
causelessly or by chance. The nature of an entity determines what it can do
and, in any given set of circumstances, dictates what it will do. The Law of
Causality is entailed by the Law of Identity. Entities follow certain laws of
action in consequence of their identity, and have no alternative to doing so.
Metaphysically, all facts are inherent in the identities of the entities that
exist; i.e., all facts are “necessary.” In this sense, to be is to be
“necessary.” The concept of “necessity,” in a metaphysical context, is
superfluous.