Why do theist often drop the letter s when referring to atheists?

[I_am_not_mafia]

The atheists recognizes the multitude and humanizes the opposition.

The atheist dehumanizes the opposition, diminishes their perceived numbers, shoe horns them into one single entity, and emphasizes what the theist perceive to be a common animating wickedness.    It makes both superciliousness and loathing roll more easily off the tongue.

It is much the same as the Nazis propaganda, as well as contemporary neo-Nazi propaganda, refering not to the Jews, but The Jew, when alledging common racial trait justifying the exterminatory antisemetic policies.

This is the most plausible explanation for me. So some theists like GC who reads lots of propaganda picks up the term without realising it.

Sorry I should rephrase that last sentence.

The theist, after reading lots of propaganda will start using the term without realising it.

Ooh ... sneaky linguistic technique!

[RoadRunner79]

How do you figure that it is a lack of education?   Do you mean that they don't realize they are doing it, and need to enlightened to the issue?

The charitable explanation for someone who does it routinely is that they don't know any better. Is it your position that they're doing it on purpose? Because that's a different kettle of fish.

I think that is the two options put forth. I suppose the phrasing of being educated just struck me, as perhaps they where suggesting there where groups of people out there, who don’t understand the pluses conventions concerning the appended “s”. I found it kinda funny.

However I could see myself doing such a think on purpose. I find it humorous when people get really worked up over such a thing. When I lived in Indiana, I almost always pronounced the “s” on the end of Illinois.

[I_am_not_mafia]

My husband loves to annoy people like that. Like referring to fins as flippers knowing that every scuba diver will correct him. He came unstuck when I discovered something that he gets worked over. Unfortunately I forgot what it was! Doh!

[I_am_not_mafia]

Many atheist blur all the 66 books of the Bible together.

[The Valkyrie]

Because where there are only ever two Sith at any time, there’s only ever one true atheist (because we’re twice as evil as the Sith).

[Anomalocaris]

Many atheist blur all the 66 books of the Bible together.

Hard to avoid doing that when they combined have the content of one wet sheet of blank toilet paper.

[Mr.Obvious]

Well, you know them and their quirk.

[Minimalist]

I suspect with most of them it is that they are stupid.

[I_am_not_mafia]

I can now add Huggy to the list.

So far atheist have determined themselves as being their own moral authority, which is interesting seeing how it's the epitome of anarchy; "Do as thou wilt"...

[Abaddon_ire]

I have noticed it, it simply isn't worth the effort of correction. The god-botherers simply are not amenable to facts for the most part. A few are.