(November 1, 2012 at 9:49 am)apophenia Wrote: or at least the position you describe isn't classically atheist, as it incorporates significant beliefs about belief that most atheists leave undefined, or settle on an orthodox view.Exactly why I must be precise and cautious. I'm not uncomfortable with a statement of 'belief': I can accept or reject things where the 'proofs' are not practical. I can say "I firmly disbelieve in God" - the same way an otherwise rational christian can say they "firmly believe in God" even though they logically admit that God is not 'provable' in the conventional sense - thus using the word 'belief' as opposed to 'fact'.
Among friends I like to conjecture as much as the next person... what if god is
?... etc, but with people at large; for example when dealing with Christians, it's important out of courtesy that I declare atheism so they don't get the wrong impression (that I'm in the market for some Jesus) and avoid being disingenuous. I can say "God may or may not exist" (agnostic) as a factual statement, but I don't and will never believe, so a declaration of atheism is important. Among atheists, as you note, the community is largely 'hard cognitive' so i need some precision in defining myself (likewise out of courtesy) and I'm finding that it also causes me to reach very different conclusions, both practically and philosophically.
