Do atheists fake egalitarianism?

[Heywood]

For an theist egalitarianism is an easy concept to accept.  People should be treated the same because God created them as equals.  However if there is no God then there really isn't any rational reason to actually believe that all the different races, genders, or sexual orientations are actually equivalent.  There might be rational reasons to pretend the are equivalent....social harmony and such...but is there rational reason to believe they are actually equivalent?  It is simply too much of a stretch to think that nature, as a matter of happenstance, made all these things equivalent.

[Longhorn]

Don't kid yourself, this is just another 'if there's no god where do your morals come from? '

[Pyrrho]

For an theist egalitarianism is an easy concept to accept.  People should be treated the same because God created them as equals. ...

That is hilarious, given the history of religion and the treatment of women, as well as the treatment of different races.  The Bible says that men and women are not equal, and it also endorses slavery.

[Chad32]

We believe people should be treated equally because that's the best way for a society to all get along with each other. That's also why killing and thievery are pretty universal, whether a culture worships Yahweh/Jesus or not. We're a social species that needs ways to get along with each other, and equality is one of the best ways of accomplishing that. No gods required.

[Heywood]

We believe people should be treated equally because that's the best way for a society to all get along with each other. That's also why killing and thievery are pretty universal, whether a culture worships Yahweh/Jesus or not. We're a social species that needs ways to get along with each other, and equality is one of the best ways of accomplishing that. No gods required.

So you don't believe people are really equal, just that society operates more smoothly if we pretend they are?  It sounds like you are simply faking egalitarianism too me.

[Pyrrho]

... That's also why killing and thievery are pretty universal, whether a culture worships Yahweh/Jesus or not. ...

I presume you mean, "That's also why prohibitions on killing and thievery are pretty universal, whether a culture worships Yahweh/Jesus or not."

[Alex K]

For an theist egalitarianism is an easy concept to accept.  People should be treated the same because God created them as equals.  However if there is no God then there really isn't any rational reason to actually believe that all the different races, genders, or sexual orientations are actually equivalent.  There might be rational reasons to pretend the are equivalent....social harmony and such...but is there rational reason to believe they are actually equivalent?  It is simply too much of a stretch to think that nature, as a matter of happenstance, made all these things equivalent.

But  all people are not treated the same, not even by Christians, don't kid yourself. That being said, it is a choice to set society up such that people are treated as equally as possible (*). It is one value among many others, and while they can partly be derived from other goals by a rational process, that's really not the point of values. We share them, because of the society we've grown up in, and because we are all human. Actually, I would hope that you would choose to stand for equality even if your God had different ideas.

Edit:
(*) To me it is one of the few remaining clear differences between progressive and conservative politics how this is handled. The progressive "leftie" tries to take the bigger picture into account and to compensate for past inequities by things like affirmative action. The "rightie" will be content with a literal, formal equality of rules. It is far from clear what being equal and being treated equal actually means, when, as Pyrrho points out below, people have vastly different skills and personalities.

[Pyrrho]

We believe people should be treated equally because that's the best way for a society to all get along with each other. That's also why killing and thievery are pretty universal, whether a culture worships Yahweh/Jesus or not. We're a social species that needs ways to get along with each other, and equality is one of the best ways of accomplishing that. No gods required.

So you don't believe people are really equal, just that society operates more smoothly if we pretend they are?  It sounds like you are simply faking egalitarianism too me.

No one but an idiot believes everyone is actually equal.  You know that some people are better at mathematics than others, some are better at baseball than others, etc.  If you are unaware of these facts, you must be brain dead.

The social equality that is desirable is as Chad32 describes it.  People should have equality of opportunity, and people's needs should be equally regarded by society.

[Minimalist]

You need a couple of more months off, Woodie.  You're still an asshole.

[Alex K]

So you don't believe people are really equal, just that society operates more smoothly if we pretend they are?  It sounds like you are simply faking egalitarianism too me.

No one but an idiot believes everyone is actually equal.  You know that some people are better at mathematics than others, some are better at baseball than others, etc.  If you are unaware of these facts, you must be brain dead.

The social equality that is desirable is as Chad32 describes it.  People should have equality of opportunity, and people's needs should be equally regarded by society.

Pyrrho, meet Woodie.