Is atheism a belief?

[GrandizerII]

~ All adult atheists have heard claims made by religious people. For example: "God made the world."

Not unless they're deaf ... or living in isolation away from society their whole life.

All of us reject these claims. We do not find them persuasive.

No, not all adult atheists reject these claims explicitly, and not all of us here in the forums are necessarily such explicit atheists.

~ We reject these claims because we have solid convictions about what constitutes good evidence. For example, "scientific evidence is better than revelation, and there is no scientific evidence that God made the world."

This is the case with some atheists, not all.

~ Therefore, all adult atheists have commitments concerning the way we evaluate truth claims, and these commitments lead us to reject the claims made by religious people.

Not necessarily.

~ If we didn't have commitments concerning the way we evaluate truth claims, it would mean that we reject religious claims based on no reasons, but merely on a whim or by personal preference.

Or maybe they're atheists by default.

Atheism simply means "no theism". Someone who hasn't been exposed to theism in any way or form (and therefore lacks that positive belief in god) is an atheist by default.

And before you bring up rocks and lizards and such, no, they don't count ... much in the same way that having hair vs. being bald does not apply to some objects/beings.