Tell that to the human ego.
Accepting the 'meaninglessness' of your life is much easier when you realize that you were perfectly fine without 'meaning' and that 'meaning,' if found, would be incomprehensible to humans. One could even reasonably conjecture that 'meaning' is really just codified, accepted emotional judgment by which we live our lives. What stands between most and their 'meaning' is an arguably erroneous, absurd, and intellectualized definition of the same: they want a set of self-evident categorical imperatives and values from which can be derived a consistent and complete morality.
Ultimately, the experience of nihilism proves to some of these aforementioned people that existence is 'meaningless,' and they fall into a depression or even kill themselves. But they're not sad about the absence of 'meaning'-- indeed, by their own logic, the absence of meaning is meaningless-- but because they implicitly believe that emotion, unsupported by 'meaning,' must be suppressed. Their execution of this principle, often made unrelenting by the sheer willpower necessary to reach nihilism without allowing their emotions to carry them off into ego-protecting delusion, leads to terminal emotional starvation.
Therefore the answer to existential despair arrived at by cold, exacting logic is understanding that nihilism itself is meaningless and consequently allowing oneself to experience and express emotion. Such a course of action is messy, painful, and even frightening for those accustomed to the Void (myself included!) but we nihilists must recognize that philosophy is within the head, for the perceived world seems Absurd. To do otherwise is to spiral into an infinite loop of intellectualization and rationalization.
That's not the point, the elimination of pain is a goal entirely of itself, I wouldn't remove the ability to feel hunger for the pleasure of not being hungry, I would do it because I dislike being hungry and if I'm a brain in a jar there simply isn't any reason to continue suffering it.
But is there not pleasure in satisfying a craving? Does water poured into a throat of thirst unslaked not taste all the sweeter? And would we not know that our pleasures were created by a lotus-eater machine, thereby experiencing pain?
Precisely, even pleasure is again in its absence, so the elimination of all pain as a goal in of itself (the only goal remaining for a creature that has superseded nature) which eventually dictates the self elimination of humanity, though of course we will linger, our still animate machinery working, our immortal eyes open, our minds still aware, but not caring.
@scorpiomover You're going to enjoy what I'm about to say very, very much. You know why.
The conundrum that Cognisant presents is one of those rare cases wherein a normally fallacious argument is not only a valid line of reasoning, but the
only valid line of reasoning. In this case, Argument From Emotion. If what we feel that we want and what our model tells us that we want don't match up, then the model is wrong. In other words, if the elimination of pain necessitates the elimination of the human race, and we don't like that outcome, then let's ask ourselves why we don't like that outcome and change the axioms of our model accordingly.
Except there's still the ego isn't there?
So long as we are self aware our ego will be inescapable, and it demands meaning, a purpose, a reason for existing, and a justification for the indignity of being anything less than all seeing, all knowing, all powerful, perfection.
Fixed: An all-powerful being can have a meaning, purpose, and reason for existing-- in fact, it can create one for itself. As for being anything less than omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, no harm exists in being so. The 'harm' exists in a sense of pointlessness in the absence of challenge; gods always win. To prevent this harm, engage in sport. And among sports, Pokemon stands out in acknowledging this problem, stating its solution to the player at the beginning of each new game: "Remember, it's not about whether you win or lose, but about the journey on which you embark and the people that you meet, the experiences that you have, and the feelings that you share."
For an example of such a journey, imagine that you and I-- gods both-- knew that our great Forum Lord Ragnar had been captured by internet trolls. In our infinite power, knowledge, grace, mercy, and wisdom, we could simply teleport Ragnar back to us, safe and sound, or work out any number of perfect, idealistic scenarios-- and we could very well do so for pure pleasure and enjoyment-- but we could also pick up our spears and shields, strap on some bright and terrible bronze armor, and tear into the enemy lines like lions into a herd of sheep as an army of two if blood, bronze, and testosterone were our favorite pastimes.*
We all want to be gods and before the end we'll either merge or kill each other to see who gets to be the final One.
Or elect a God.
There's no stopping you carving your throat open with your kitchen knife, either, but somehow, you're (thankfully) still here. Humanity is not perfect, but we've managed to avoid destroying ourselves-- even when given all the tools and all the reasons to do it.
-Duxwing
*Frankly, I wouldn't mind such an adventure if Proxy (leader, if only by virtue of having more Te than all of us combined) Scorned Reflex (funny and zany) Proletar (Lancer, see TV Tropes) and Gopher (Heart, see TV Tropes) joined us. You could be the Gadgeteer Genius, and I'd be the Smart Guy (I'm not tooting my own horn; I just don't have any other plot-relevant skill!). We'd come home heroes, the head of the Troll Chieftain mounted on our blood-stained spears.