I know that if I fly I may have a fatal flying accident. *That in
itself does nothing to increase my safety. At least it does not
increase it above the margin that was established a long time ago.

And what exactly was the reason for establishing that margin a long
time ago? If you're not driven to fly as safe as you possibly can by
survival and the preservation of life, I'd sure like to know where
else your motivation comes from.

There's absolutely no question in my mind that complacency, over-
confidence, risk-taking, etc can end me if I let any of them creep
into my flying. I also know the fact that I can kill myself or others
is tremendous motivation to be as safe a pilot as I can be. This is
just basic common sense. As a low-timer-nobody pilot, I've given the
idea of complacency through experience much thought. I hope to do my
best to not fall into that trap.

Thanks for the thread Bob. Interesting discussion.