Atheism and the meaning of life - what drives you?

[Oldandeasilyconfused]

That's true. An atheist tricking themselves into believing in a comforting afterlife, for example, is pragmatically superior than any other coping mechanism.

I disagree, Klorophyll.  There is nothing superior about tricking oneself, and at the level of the unconscious mind I feel that this is a recipe for disaster.

I would rather deal with unpleasant realities up front, in the open, than pretend they aren't there.

 There's the rub.

This sounds truer with each passing year "if ignorance is bliss t'is folly to be wise."

The one thing I'm sure of is from experience; that if I have my druthers I'd druther be miserable and reasonably well off than poor and miserable.

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That's true. An atheist tricking themselves into believing in a comforting afterlife, for example, is pragmatically superior than any other coping mechanism.

I disagree, Klorophyll.  There is nothing superior about tricking oneself, and at the level of the unconscious mind I feel that this is a recipe for disaster.

I would rather deal with unpleasant realities up front, in the open, than pretend they aren't there.