This thread is for the resident atheists to answer the questions above. These are great questions. The world sometimes does seem dark to me. I think it is more a response to the problems I see rather than a matter of existential coloring. But then, we're all familiar with that perspective.For instance, i understand and appreciate the enormous existential courage it takes to live without any hope or desire of belief in anything beyond this life. and please know there is no sarcasm there. i would like to know what you feel gives you purpose and meaning and how you determine what is good. Those are answers i find in faith and so that is an area i really don't know how to relate to and how to wrap my head around. you seem very bright which sometimes can make the world even darker and bleaker.
I'd start by saying I have empathy. Judging by how others have acted in certain situations, I would say I have the same amount of empathy. I truly feel bad for people when I see them in certain situations. I also have hope. The same amount as anyone else, I'd guess. Just as anyone has goals, toward which their hope points, I have goals. My overarching goal, my ultimate concern, is to improve life for myself and my loved ones primarily(and everyone else secondly). I truly desire this, from the bottom of my heart. It is general enough that it encompasses all the minor goals and hopes that pop up from day to day or year to year. Making another person smile is a small victory.
If you ask why I want this so much, I'd say the answer has to do with a mixture of genetics and upbringing. We are all born with varying degrees of behavior influencing emotions, such as empathy, desire, embarrassment, and guilt. In some cases, we need not even be taught how they apply. Children have been shown in experiments to become upset when other children are upset or harmed.
The application, in detail, of some of these responses or emotions is based on what we learn. We must first be taught that cheating is wrong before we are able to feel guilty if we are caught cheating. As far as the application of the golden rule of morality, I understand perfectly well that in order to improve my life the most, everyone must follow the golden rule of morality. I do not accept this based on faith. It is reasonable, and can even be shown mathematically(I think - game theory). Everyone MUST follow the golden rule of morality if I am to live a more comfortable/fulfilling life, and that includes myself and my children.
The joys in life, the smiles each day, laughter of my son, appreciation of a person helped. These things make life worth living. I find the joy inside myself. To me, when I hear of people who depend on the ideas of heaven and hell as motivations for their behaviors and hopes, it seems so 'external'. They aren't propelled by anything within themselves, almost as if they are hollow and lacking. An external impetus, a carrot on a stick, is required for them to find hope, meaning, and motivation.