(May 21, 2013 at 12:49 pm)plaincents822 Wrote: If the topic comes up I'll usually just tell people I'm an atheist, because it's commonly used and everyone pretty much knows what it means. To be honest I would rather say that I'm an empiricist...
I'm the same way with the term naturalist, though most people hear it and think of someone who studies plants and animals...or worse, mishear it as "naturist" (I actually quite prefer to wear clothing outdoors, thankyouverymuch). But simply put, I'd prefer be described by what I am than what I'm not. I don't call myself a non-athlete because I'd rather play music than sports; rather, I call myself a musician. And of course, not all atheists are naturalists, just as not all freethinkers are atheists, and so on.
But alas, atheist is the word people know. Any other term concocted to describe someone who lacks belief in a deity will ultimately acquire the same negative connotations to those who think atheists are evil, and the same indifference from those who don't give a shit if you believe in a god or not.
