The Image Problem With Atheism in America

[ShaMan]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteveryt...-atheists/

Faith-based institutions... fight racial discrimination...

Followed by a bunch of racially dividing hot-words from the media (in the style of what they are criticizing).

White atheists... White organizations... black... racial... divide.... people of color...

Seems like your/their side is the one 'keeping a record of offense' as far as race goes.

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The real image problem with atheists in america is that theists paint them in a bad light.

[Cato]

I have no idea what you're trying to say.

He doesn't either, ever. I wouldn't sweat it.

[Mudhammam]

From the article:

Demand for “evidence.” "Can you provide any evidence to support your claim?" Now from social justice discourse, we already know about this stance of the privileged. Demand “proof” from the marginalized and if not provided, use the rhetoric that if the marginalized cannot google for them and "teach" them, the facts must not exist. This is comical because it actually mimics theism. Monotheists often say that if an atheist cannot prove that their god doesn’t exist, then that god must exist. Notice the pattern. This is why some mainstream movement atheists resemble some theists to me—their rhetorical methods. Always semantic warfare amidst evangelism.

What??? Jesus fucking Christ. Did Revelation777 or Ronadee write this article? LOL.

[Bad Wolf]

Well at least you used the other logical fallacy.

Which one would that be?

Even if you had 100 crusades, they wouldn't equate to the crimes of just one of those despots.

Really? And who gets to deside that? You?

And you didn't answer my question. Shall I refraise it? Do you think that these atrocities (of which you haven't given any exampls btw) were caused by atheism?

The WBC and min's islamophobic rants focused on the hijab.

Disagreeing with Islam and insulting their customs does not make one an Islamaphobe.

[BlackMason]

I think it's hard being black and an atheist. I think it was a pod cast that I was listening to that described it well. The church is a very powerful symbol in the black community. During the civil rights movement era, black people were not allowed to congregate in large groups. The only exception to this rule was the church. So this opportunity was seized upon and meetings for the civil rights movement were held in church.

If you go back further to around the times of slavery, black people were given the bible. In my opinion this was a tactic to enslave their minds even more. However, the bible became a source of strength. Think about it. African Americans are a people without an identity. Religion claims to be the genesis of all things. What impact do you think this will have on a stolen people who have lost their roots?

Religion is a major component in the identity of African Americans. It is a source of strength. The church was a place of refuge used to fight social injustices. How can a black man really speak against a system that has been literally everything to black people? I'm not American but I am black. These things that I've described in this post reverberate even on the shores of South Africa. There is something broken in me because I have chosen atheism. It's one of the fastest ways to repel a woman who is otherwise attracted to you.

Let's not forget the issue of education. Black people are not exactly known for their high literacy rates. This problem further exacerbates the issue because a people that find no virtue in education are in trouble. We keep turning to the same old, same old to solve problems. In a way this can't be blamed. After all look how much religion has been able to do in the past.

These are the reasons why I think there are so few black atheist.

[Mystical]

Against my better judgement, I thought this thread was going to be interesting. I was wrong. Polaris, the disappoint I has right now with you is staggering.

[Mister Agenda]

Did these evil atheists do these evil things because there was no god? I'm being serious here, was that specifically their reason for doing bad things?


And as for outmatching theists in terms of sheer brutality, I'm sceptical of that, remind me again, how many crusades were there? 6? 7? How many witch burnings? How many stonings?

Agenda, I can "divine" where they get their ideas because those atheists like to link to those blogs like they want more people to visit them. I mean, the university websites disproved what the Yank was passing off as evolution theory.

Thanks for sharing your fascinating little anecdotes.

The WBC and min's islamophobic rants focused on the hijab. Also, they also share the same views on Christian groups, especially their constant ravings about the Catholic Church.

Sharing a conclusion isn't the same thing as sharing a position. You're well aware that Min holds his views for entirely different reasons, and that Min's criticisms are very different from the WBC's.

I can equally claim that you hold many of Hitler's positions, using that standard.

The issue the author was illuminating stated that it was the religious who were the ones doing the actual good and that even the minority atheists had to team up with them because the atheists with clout were wasting time on petty issues that really didn't matter (an American saying I have heard describes the latter's attitudes perfectly...First World problems).

The reason we team up with theists is because we are a tiny minority, and we generally don't have issues with teaming up with people who don't agree with us on other matters if it's in a good cause.

If 5% of the country was Christian and 73% of it was atheist, do you think it would be some kind of sign of charitable inferiority if the Christians teamed up with atheists on charitable projects?

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Even with today's war technology, the same level of misery wouldn't be needed if fought in the style of the Crusades.

You fight with modern military weapons in the style of the Crusades, you're using them wrong.

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Not for nothing: The UCC is a predominantly black church, and the only thing between most members and atheism is Unitarianism. They have no creed, there is nothing you are required to believe to be a member of the UCC. I think they have a lot of 'Christian atheists'.

[Polaris]

ITT...a bunch of Yanks making excuses for letting the religious do what you should be doing.

[Whateverist]

You guys just don't want to admit you really don't do as much as the religious groups in America to help those in need.

"GET A JOB!"


Happy now?

[Bad Wolf]

Yea, just ignore my response and pretend it isn't there. That will make it go away.