(November 1, 2010 at 3:17 pm)Existentialist Wrote:(November 1, 2010 at 10:43 am)Paul the Human Wrote:(November 1, 2010 at 10:26 am)Ervin Wrote: Anyway I still believe that you need belief in order to be an atheist.You do. You have to believe in reality and evidence. You have to believe that the scientific method and rational thought are a more reliable way to search for truth than superstition and magical thinking.
May I ask why you think that is the case? As far as I can see, there is absolutely no requirement to believe in reality... [snip]
I was being facetious.
Also, you seem to think that the belief that there are no god(s) must come first and is the cause of the 'lack of belief'. It makes far more sense the other way around. Speaking personally, it was my lack of belief in claims that deities exist that inspired me to look into it to the point that I have decided I actually believe they do not exist. Many others (as my poll shows) do not hold the belief that god(s) do not exist, yet they are atheists, nonetheless... because they do not believe the claims that god(s) do exist. One can lack belief without actually believing that either choice is true.
