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sorry for my bad English. I'm translating a book about behavior. What does "At this late date" mean in the following context:

At this late date, I don’t think we have to strenuously argue that finding meaning and purpose improves our lives.

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  • It means that this issue (whether finding meaning and purpose improves lives) is not a new issue. It has been discussed and researched for many years, a lot of data has been obtained. The majority of researchers have come to the conclusion that "yes, it does improves lives". This conclusion is based on such a rich amount of publications and data that the authors of this book (that you're translating) feel no need to argue further. "At this late date" -- this phrase reflects the fact that a lot of time has been dedicated to this issue, it's not a new issue.
    – CowperKettle
    Dec 28, 2015 at 4:40
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    @CopperKettle - That should probably be an answer, not a comment. To haile: This is probably a harder question to find an answer to, given that "late date" can be used in so many contexts. But, as I said in another comment, you can still give us some kind of better indiication of what you found when you tried to solve this problem on your own. As you translate the book, you should check Google and dictionaries first, and then ask questions here when you're still stumped – but please, tell us what you found when you tried to do your research.
    – J.R. ♦
    Dec 28, 2015 at 9:08
  • @J.R. I tried to google it but I couldn't find anything.
    – haile
    Dec 28, 2015 at 10:18

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It means that this issue (whether finding meaning and purpose improves lives) is not new, and some sort of consensus has been reached regarding it. The issue probably has been discussed and researched for many years, and a lot of data has been obtained. The majority of researchers have come to the conclusion that "yes, it does improves lives". This conclusion is based on such a rich amount of publications and data that the authors of this book (that you're translating) feel no need to argue further.

In short, the phrase "at this late date" reflects the fact that a lot of time has been dedicated to this issue, it's not a new issue.

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