"Not the right time" rears it's ugly head again.

[AFTT47]

I agree with you 100% in principle, Brian. In practice, I don't know if comments like that are worth it. You're doing it to advance the cause of atheism but if all you accomplish is making people think atheists are pricks, it's counter-productive. I've seen that exact scenario played out dozens of times in various forums and it always goes the way you described. The people always think the atheist is a prick. If you choose to comment in those situations, choose your words VERY carefully. It's not a matter of being right but of having the desired effect. I don't know if it's possible, frankly.

No sorry, but the only case that can be made is case by case. Even between atheists the public disagreements either way theists need to see, that gets them to treat us as individuals and not sheep. So the reality is we are individuals too so don't say "You make me look bad" you say, "You make yourself look bad".

And in the grand scale that is what humans should do in any case regardless of label, treat each other as individuals.

Well, it's your choice as an individual what to do but make no mistake: If you represent yourself as an atheist and come across badly, it certainly DOES influence how all atheists are viewed. It shouldn't be that way but it IS. Think about it. We're dealing with people with an emotion-based worldview here - not a logical one.

I won't presume to tell you how to proceed; I just want to make you aware of the pitfalls of arguing against prayer in the face of tragedy. I have seen it done countless times and I have tried it myself. In EVERY instance I have seen or been involved in, everyone but fellow atheists come away with the impression that the atheist is a heartless prick. IMHO, the result of the argument is a net loss for atheists. People walk away with a worse opinion of us than they had going in. Whether the logical argument about the absurdity of prayer sunk in, I have no way of knowing. If it did sink in. I am similarly ignorant of the relative net effect of getting through to them versus them thinking I'm a heartless prick. I don't know if there is a net gain or not. My gut feeling is that there is a net loss.