Don't like saying "I'm an atheist"? Try this instead.

[CapnAwesome]

It's funny how people have a problem with the word Atheist.

It's too in your face or something.  I like it though. Probably for that reason. Brights is ironically the stupidest name ever.

Well, atheist is a negative term because it describes what one doesn't believe in, instead of what one does believe in. That's why I use the word "Freethinker," it describes what I do believe in: freedom of thought and freedom to reach your own conclusions about things. If I lemming off a cliff, it's only because I followed my nose and not the ass of another lemming, as Dennis Miller once said.

Freethinker is stupid. It could literally mean anything. I think its funny that the "freethinker" reddit page, basically everyone has the same set of ideas. Atheist is accurate, number one, and it's a good word that riles up the religious. A freethinker isn't necessarily an Atheist by definition. I am an Atheist and I want to let people know that.

If Mormons show up to your door and you tell them you are a freethinker, they aren't going to know what you mean at all. If you say you are an Atheist, they get the idea right away.

---

Why not just say "I don't believe in God" if and when someone asks?

That is what I say. That or I'm an Atheist. I think there is something about left wing people that makes them want to relabel themselves in unclear ways all the time. Same way liberal, which is a fine word with good connotations got relabeled progressive, which is a stupid meaningless word. Something about the left likes to change labels all the time.

Atheist is fine. There is nothing wrong with the word.

[Jackalope]

Why not just say "I don't believe in God" if and when someone asks?

Why not just say what we prefer to say?

I generally prefer "None of your damn business, nosy."

[Whateverist]

Why not just say "I don't believe in God" if and when someone asks?

Why not just say what we prefer to say?

Damned catholic agenda rears its ugly head again.

---

---

[Cod]

The subject rarely comes up in my everyday conversations, the only times I've said "I'm an atheist." is when dealing with door knockers or people who stop me in the street.

[DLJ]

Well, atheist is a negative term because it describes what one doesn't believe in, instead of what one does believe in. That's why I use the word "Freethinker," it describes what I do believe in: freedom of thought and freedom to reach your own conclusions about things. If I lemming off a cliff, it's only because I followed my nose and not the ass of another lemming, as Dennis Miller once said.

Freethinker is stupid. It could literally mean anything. I think its funny that the "freethinker" reddit page, basically everyone has the same set of ideas. Atheist is accurate, number one, and it's a good word that riles up the religious. A freethinker isn't necessarily an Atheist by definition.  I am an Atheist and I want to let people  know that.

If Mormons show up to your door and you tell them you are a freethinker, they aren't going to know what you mean at all. If you say you are an Atheist, they get the idea right away.

---

Why not just say "I don't believe in God" if and when someone asks?

That is what I say. That or I'm an Atheist. I think there is something about left wing people that makes them want to relabel themselves in unclear ways all the time. Same way liberal, which is a fine word with good connotations got relabeled progressive,  which is a stupid meaningless word. Something about the left likes to change labels all the time.

Atheist is fine. There is nothing wrong with the word.

Sorry to say this but labels are important.

People have gone for 'progressive' because 'liberal' (in the classical, John Stuart Mill sense) has been tainted by what is often now called Neo-Liberal (which is neither Liberal nor Neo and is akin to Reaganism/Thatcherism).

But more seriously, regarding 'freethinker'... this is a term that won't get you killed. It hardly raises an eyebrow in Muslim countries and even commands a modicum of respect (quite possibly because, as you inferred, one could still be delusional on the god question but in an unaffiliated kinda way).

Do you think I would have been allowed into Pakistan had I put Atheist or Jew on my visa application?

I live in a country where a Minister in the Prime Minister's office has official declared that atheists should be hunted down.

I'll still happily identify as an atheist if/when asked but trust me, it's nice to have the option.

[Whateverist]

It's funny how people have a problem with the word Atheist.

It's too in your face or something.  I like it though. Probably for that reason. Brights is ironically the stupidest name ever.

Well, atheist is a negative term because it describes what one doesn't believe in, instead of what one does believe in. That's why I use the word "Freethinker," it describes what I do believe in: freedom of thought and freedom to reach your own conclusions about things. If I lemming off a cliff, it's only because I followed my nose and not the ass of another lemming, as Dennis Miller once said.

This comes closest to my take - some dissatisfaction with having my beliefs characterized by just the fact that I don't believe gods are independent entities in the empirical world.    Atheism isn't really about me, it's about defining what's different between me and the religious.  It even falls short in communicating what I believe about gods in general.  I have opinions about why god belief has been a thing for so long, and am willing to concede they have value to some believers even if literally they lack substance.  I think the phenomenon of god belief has the potential to tell us a lot about who we are and how we are wired.  Lets study it.

[Succubus]

...Freethinker is stupid. It could literally mean anything...

Freethinker, free spirit, bright, are all terms that demand an explanation. It's a needless distraction so why use them? I'm an atheist, works just fine, people know what I'm saying.*

My personal favourite? Ask someone how old their dog is and they will often tell you 'He is seventy two years old'. They say this with that smug knowing look that  suggests you are about to point out that dogs don't live that long, now they will go on to explain the concept of 'dog years'. This is when I whip out me revolver and blow the morons brains all over the vet's waiting room.



*This will now degenerate into yet another atheist/agnostic definition thread.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

I don't have the slightest problem with, "atheist." I have no desire to pussyfoot around it. I'm an atheist and will tell that to anyone who asks.

There was a question mark on the OPening statement. 

[drfuzzy]

I kind of like anti-deist.

[emjay]

Why not just say "I don't believe in God" if and when someone asks?

idontbelieveingodforums.org doesn't have quite the same ring to it

But seriously, what's in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet and that works the other way around as well... so what's in a name/label? Basically emotional baggage, positive or negative, for different people.