The Atheism Symbol

[The_Thinking_Theist]

I see the problem, there would be another bad connotation if all atheists started wearing big red "A"s with circles around them!

The difference is that atheists in that scenario would be identifiable as "a-holes" only by their chosen symbology. Theist a-holes, on the other hand, would be recognisable regardless.

I don't get the FSM. I tried to read the Gospel but then I was always thinking "DAFUQ?"

That's the whole point. Satire, you see. It holds a mirror up to what it parodies.

I was referring not to a-hole, though you made a good point, but to the anarchy symbol.

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First of all, I'm not aware of any unique "Atheist Symbol". The one that you refer to belongs to American Atheists. Others include the Scarlet letter A, Empty Set symbol, Darwin Fish, FSM etc. However, while individuals and organizations alike may pick any of them (or come up with new ones), given the absence of any central doctrine, none of them can be regarded as "The Atheism Symbol".

Secondly, the symbol you mentioned, one that originated from a specific organization, is not supposed to represent atheists in general, it represents what they consider atheists should stand for. And what they hope atheists should be like is smart, scientifically-minded, educated free-thinkers and the symbol captures that quite well.

My living in America biases me. But still, it is prevalent and I don't like it.

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I don't get the FSM. I tried to read the Gospel but then I was always thinking "DAFUQ?"

You probably don't get it because you are a theist, and the parody is of your entire worldview.

I gathered that it was a parody of the Christian worldview, one which I do not have.