The world would likely not be a better place if everyone was like you or me, because it would lack diversity. Imagine a world where everyone agrees with you and likes the same activities, hobbies, etc! How incredibly boring!

But seriously, you've demonstrated introspection and a sense of empathy in this post, and both are things I think the world could use a lot more of. Imagine if we all spent some time putting ourselves in each others shoes! Then the world would maintain diversity, but reduce conflict. Best of both worlds.

I'm not an atheist, but rather an agnostic. However I think we all (atheists, agnostics, Christians, and those of most other belief systems) share a lot of values, and most of us can agree that certain basic principles like 'treat others the way you want to be treated' are a solid basis for a functional society.

I think we are somewhat hindered in making forward progress by the capitalist ideal of 'lookout for number 1'. There seems to be a general sense that when we've made it, we can start looking out for others. But most of us keep struggling along and never get that far, or do make it but can never quite decide that we have enough yet.

Thanks for an interesting and thought-provoking post!