Why do atheists get singled out like this?

[Minimalist]

If your stance was something positive: like materialism, existentialism, humanism... etc etc... joe public would think more favourably of you.

And if a rabbit was an elephant it wouldn't have to worry about house cats eating them.

But all that "atheism" means is that we reject your ( and everyone's superstitions.) Now, I am fairly positive about that but we are what we are.

[Epimethean]

Min, you're on fire, man! Damned good post.

[fr0d0]

Wow

Epi you're nothing but a troll. When are you going to engage that brain of yours and add something to a discussion?? All I see you do is folow the mob. Min made such a non point there I thought that was the weakest post he'd ever made. Only in a group of like minded miserable old complainers would such a position be applauded.

[KichigaiNeko]

Wow

Epi you're nothing but a troll. When are you going to engage that brain of yours and add something to a discussion?? All I see you do is folow the mob. Min made such a non point there I thought that was the weakest post he'd ever made. Only in a group of like minded miserable old complainers would such a position be applauded.

'Sup fr0ds?? the above is not one of your better rebuttals...you mk dear??

[ElDinero]

Min made such a non point there I thought that was the weakest post he'd ever made. Only in a group of like minded miserable old complainers would such a position be applauded.

No, he made a perfectly good point. You were basically saying we should market atheism better to be more popular by calling it something else. Now firstly, I don't particularly care about being popular, especially among people whose best friend is make believe.

More importantly, words have definitions. You can't call a house a car and expect it to sprout wheels and start travelling. Being a humanist is not the same as being an atheist. Being a materialist is not the same as being a humanist. As it happens, I am a secularist, humanist, materialist and atheist, but you can be one or some of those without being the others.

Finally, to refer to my atheism as something different would imply I was trying to camouflage my position. The only reason I would camouflage my position is if I felt it was flimsy. Say...that's a little bit like creationism being repackaged as 'intelligent design', isn't it?

---

Sorry, just to elaborate further. What needs to happen is that we need to increase public understanding of what it means to be an atheist, how many people are atheists, what we believe, how atheists lead full and happy and normal lives etc. Not to dress it up as something else.

[Epimethean]

Wow

Epi you're nothing but a troll. When are you going to engage that brain of yours and add something to a discussion?? All I see you do is folow the mob. Min made such a non point there I thought that was the weakest post he'd ever made. Only in a group of like minded miserable old complainers would such a position be applauded.

Fr0ds, should I have done something brilliant and said instead, "...?"

Sorry mate, I follow my own instincts, not the mob. When Min gets in a good jab at the apologists and other wankers, I have to let him know. I laughed out loud at the logic he used, couched as it was in humor. It hit the point bullseye.

[fr0d0]

So you supported his statement that is repeated here in almost every other post as a mark of genius.. I get it Epi.

No El... I wasn't talking about satheism disguising itself.. just that it is what it is.. a negative position regarded as such. The other positions you might easiliy adopt which would describe _something_ about yourself would be unoffensive to everyone.

[ElDinero]

Materialist seems to have some stigma attached to it, I've even seen it on these forums. Mostly since Fred turned up.

[fr0d0]

Hmmm I don't think so El. I'm sure the materialists feel the opposite.

[Epimethean]

So you supported his statement that is repeated here in almost every other post as a mark of genius.. I get it Epi.

Fr0d0, no need to get your fundies in a twist because Min can use a solid one liner to punch easy holes in a silly target. By your own standards, you can troll with the best of em.