Apart from whatever we choose there is no purpose.

(February 27, 2016 at 1:54 pm)thool Wrote: I'm interested in discussing this with you all here...

When you boil it down, humans exist for one reason only: to make more humans, either directly or indirectly. When you consider other animals, they reproduce in order to continue the lineage, possibly eat other animals, and provide food for other animals. Even at the top of the food chain, a dead animal clearly provides food. So they are part of a chain of dependencies. Humans are really no different in this respect, although the way we do this has far different impacts (a separate discussion).

If you do not have children, you still play a role. Your existence usually requires good and services from others, so you are creating demand. Your job may also enable the continuation of our species, such as being a doctor or teacher. Even if you do not have a job, you consume goods and services from people who exist, in part, to serve society.

Being an relatively new atheist, I no longer believe that we exist to glorify or serve something. We exist to make more of us.

I'd love to explore this more. Any thoughts?

If life would be a meal, purpose are all the reasons why you would spend time and effort in creating a beautiful and tastefull meal instead of throwing all the ingredients in a blender. All despite the fact it all ends up the same.

"Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring,
Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish,
Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)
Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the objects mean, of the struggle ever renew’d,
Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me,
Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me intertwined,
The question, O me! so sad, recurring—What good amid these, O me, O life?
Answer:
That you are here—that life exists and identity,
That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse"

-Walt Whitman, 'Leaves of Grass'

Same 'purpose' as every other species, on a fundamental level. Survive long enough to pass on our genetic material. Everything else is garnish that makes the time dedicated to that purpose more appealing and pass as problem-free as our comfort level allows.

Ok, I'm really demonstrably bad at it, but it still holds.

Our purpose is to do as physics does. Guess what? We're all doing it! *high fives all around*

I've already achieved my purpose in life.
To see Motorhead up close with lots of babes and blunts going around?

It's all downhill from here sadly.

We are no different from animals, except we are slightly more refined and addicted to comfort, and slightly more intelligent than some of them.

Our lives have no more objective purpose than theirs.

We live for ourselves, our loved ones, our communities, for the common good. We live to enjoy life.

One of the best ways to do this is to blast away the 2000-year-old superstitious junk that has held us back for so long.

Actually, I'm not into lofty meaning of life definitions.

My purpose of life is to make the best of it wiithout being a dick to people, not deserving it.

Our purpose is to figure out what our purpose is.

Our purpose is the same as every other living organism on the planet.

To perpetuate the existence of our species.

Nothing more, nothing less.