Faux News: Atheism is a religion, too

[Esquilax]

I think that some theists will refer to atheism as a religion as a way to counter the criticisms against organized religion, or the criticism of those who follow a religion. If they can categorize atheism as a religion, then they can cry "glass houses" when religion is criticized. It's a substitute for any argument of actual substance, so I tend not to care whether people consider it to be a religion or not. Most of the time, they believe in far greater (and more harmful) myths, and I'd rather address those.

It's the same with that old "atheists have faith too!" chestnut you occasionally see. My response to that is generally confusion: I thought christians hold faith up as a virtue, why is it suddenly a dirty word when applied to someone else?

(Before anyone answers, I do know why: faith in their organization is a virtue. Faith anywhere else is foolishness.)