A brilliant and insightful tour de force. One of the most scholarly postings (complete with footnotes!) we get around here. Whether one agrees with every point or not, I heap scorn on those who laugh and ridicule such a well thought out piece without offering a counter argument of any comparable value. You sir have increased the content of our intellectual gene pool and for that I am grateful. Hopefully others who disagree will come forth with equally compelling content - although, frankly, it will probably take a while to produce something of that quality.

Since I am also sadly unable to come up with a worthy response on-the-fly, I'll leave you with how Shakespeare summed up the unbeliever's position.

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing.

— Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5, lines 17-28)

But such thoughts, however well expressed, secretly require the thinker to take a position outside of time to assess the ultimate zero sum game nature of things when it is all over and the hypothetical outside observer is left singing that old song, "Is that all there is?"

Having spent over a full man-year of my life on the volleyball court, I can assure you that while the outcome of those games matters not to me now, each and every one of them was all that mattered while I was playing it.

That said, it would be even better if there was some eternal value to the outcome of those games. That's the main reason among many why I prefer the Christian viewpoint:

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person's work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. -- 1 Corinthians 3:11-15