How Would You Describe Your Non-Believer Status?

[stopbush]

Poll question: How Would You Describe Your Non-Believer Status?

Vote below:

[vixengrl]

1. I guess someone could comment...

I'm an atheist. I just don't think there's a god. No proof, no rationale, n'ai pas raison de cette hypothesie and so on. When I was younger, I was pretty much an agnostic, when I wasn't "whoring after strange religions." You know, like Lutheranism and the like. And New Age-y stuff. High Magic(k). Wicca. Buddhism. Whev. But twhen I get right donw to it--apparently, the universe is very, very big and very, very old, and doesn't really seem to have one of those anthropomorphic stern old uncles caretaking the joint, as one reads about in the romantic literature on the subject. The idea sort of rules itself out after a while:

Seen him? (No.)

Talks to you or anyone you know? (No.)

Likely anything creating anything like the universe you inhabit would have anything like human hang-ups about needing attention or secuality or what not? (Um, no, not half-likely.)

I can't say I'm actually anti-theist though. I view religion as a social tool of early civilizations that is like an appendix--vestigial and prone to inflamation and infection on occasion. Where toxic, it should be removed. Mostly, it's just there, hanging with the intestines, or whatever. Some people maintain religion instructs them on morality and gives them a sense of peace and comfort, but I tend to suppose it mostly reinforces their own sense of right and wrong and provides a justification of their optimism. But it can just as easily justify crusades, inquisitions, executions, and tyranny--I tend to think it does so as a symptom of political malfeasance, though. In other words, it's an *excuse*.

I tend to see theism at best as a very inspirational traditional folklore. It has a historical value. I can't totally oppose it. Just the abuses of it.

[awoke_in_2003]

10. "Talks to you or anyone you know?"

Nope. The voices in my head are not deity :)

[cosmik debris]

2. Ignostic-Apathist

i.e. With respect to god(s), I don't know what you are talking about and I don't care.

[greyl]

30. The best part of telling someone you're Ignostic is

that you can immediately put the onus on them to explain exactly what the fuck they're talking about.
Clarifying terms at the beginning of a discussion is one of my favorite things.

Are you really an Apathist, cosmik? I could swear I've seen you've posting as if you're interested in others Theological beliefs around here. Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you mean by that.

[cosmik debris]

32. I don't care about god

because god, real or imagined, has no interaction with my life. There is no difference between life with god and life without god. So I don't care.

But beliefs do affect my life and the lives of my friends. For example, Prop 8 really messed with a bunch of people who don't deserve to be messed with. I'm not gay, and I don't live in California, but I know that if the believers can fuck with human rights in California, they can do in any state. The enemy is not god, the enemy is belief.

[greyl]

33. Ah. That would go without saying.

If you don't know the subject of what someone's talking about(Ignostic), how in the world could you care about the actual subject itself?

[Synnical]

3. Hard/Positive Atheist

Cannot imagine a "god" until all can come up with a universal, objective definition of what a "god" is.

-Cindy in Fort Lauderdale

[amyrose2712]

4. Agnostic, leaning more towards the idea that there is no god

as most religious tout him to be, however to claim to be an Atheist I would have to be positive that something unknown to me does not exist . This I do not know for sure. Quantum mechanics makes it hard to believe anything exists at all. Basically, I have no way of knowing.

[amyrose2712]

9. I also think there may be perceptions we yet have developed

that keeps us from a vast amount of knowledge. Which forces me to remain Agnostic.

[ihavenobias]

5. Non-Theist.

I believe there is zero evidence that God exists (and the idea is completely irrational/illogical) but I can't *technically* disprove the idea (just like I can't disprove unicorns).

I especially think the idea of a benevolent creator to be absurd in light of rape, torture and molestation (and other horrors of life). I'm not completely closed off to the idea of a relatively indifferent "higher force" that science hasn't been able to uncover/explain yet, but that "It" is surely gender neutral (we say "He" as if God has a cock and balls) and we in no way resemble It.

In other words, even if there is a God of sorts, I don't buy the idea that It cares what we do on some individual level or that He damns us to burn for eternity if don't kiss his ass. And if the popular conception of God *does* exist (you know, he either lets us past the velvet rope in the clouds or He damns us simply for not believing), He's a terrible, terrible being that I have no desire to worship.

[Deep13]

6. skeptic, which has led me to atheism and anti-theism.

There is no god. There is no supernature. To the degree that gaps in our knowledge allow for the possibility of a divine entity, such a being cannot possibly be god in any meaningful sense of the world. It is absolutely clear from the evidence that there is no purposeful direction in the development of life. And prosing that god is the reason the universe exists only makes the problem worse. If the universe should not exist, then neither should a purposeful, intelligent god.

What we know about human thinking and the history of religion makes it clear that we invented the idea of god. Our perception that there must be purpose in the universe and that there is a spirit world beyond the natural world is the product of of the shortcomings of our thinking processes. Consequently, questions like "who created the universe" and "what is the meaning of life" are not valid questions because they presuppose their own answers.

I also know that how people act is determined by what they believe. For this reason, a live and let live approach is simply not viable. Regardless of what particular believers are willing to do, the dogmatic religious systems themselves will not rest until every knee is bent and in their direction. Dogma is always dangerous, but is especially so when its adherents believe to be acting on a mandate from the creator of the universe. What can possibly be unjustified when carrying out god's will? In the 21st century we can no longer afford to sit idly by and let throngs of people put irrational ideas into practice. I am not suggesting anything that violates the Constitution. Rather, we should simply admit that irrationality can no longer be allowed to hide behind the deference generally given to wrong ideas under the label of religion when we afford no such deference to any other ideas. And we must be willing to admit that not all belief systems are either equally valid or invalid. A person who thinks the proper response to learning that his daughter was raped is to burn her alive is less moral, ethical and loving than someone who would comfort her and seek justice for her. It is not just the extremists either. The general acceptance of religious dogma, even by liberals, allows the damage to occur. Just ask all the CA Democrats who just voted to ban gay marriage.

[Joe the Liberal]

7. Atheist......

I don't believe in all the nonsense and hypocrisy of religion. I don't believe there is a god or anything supernatural, religion is absurd and just another form of control.

[TripleKatPad]

8. I am an Atheist

A brazillion years ago I understood that I didn't believe. I went thru with certain rituals dictated by my parents' church, but by 16, I was outta there. Took me until 21 to convince myself I was not just an "agnostic" but really, truly an atheist. At that point, I let go of the faux guilt and embraced my non-belief. I've never looked back since then.

Today, I am surrounded by theists. Every person I know beats the bible to one degree or another. I don't know even one person who thinks like me. My closest friends know about me, and I don't hesitate to tell people I am an atheist. But I don't bring it up on purpose either, because I don't see it as important, and there is nothing to gain in arguing religious beliefs with people with a different view.

The happy part is that my family accepts me for who I am. When they pray at family gatherings, I stare eyes-wide-open off into the distance, and think happy thoughts. I know my positive wishes do as much good as their prayers. We all win and no one is angry.

All this said, if pushed to admit, I do wish I knew even one atheist in my real life. It would be nice to have a kindred thinker to talk to.

Oh well. Not to worry. I am nothing if not a great adapter. Been doing it all my life.

Peace, y'all.

[TechBear_Seattle]

11. Apatheist

Theist: "I believe in God."
Atheist (weak): "I do not believe in God."
Atheist (strong): "I believe there is no God."
Agnostic: "I am not sure if I believe in God."
Apatheist: "I believe I'll have some coffee and a few cookies."

[Rob H.]

12. Atheist leaning anti-theist

mainly because I'm becoming increasingly fed up with the fundagelical dipshits out there who think it's any of their business who other people fall in love with and want to marry (see Focus on the Family and the Mormons sticking their big beaks in to push Proposition 8 in California), that despite literal mountains of scientific evidence the Earth is not more than 6000 years old and man and dinosaurs lived alongside one another, and that non-religious people are "inherently wicked" for not believing in The Great Hall Monitor in the Sky. They can all kiss the fattest part of my ass.

:rant:

[immoderate]

13. Atheist, using the definition "without god."

Since the time I could think about what was real and what was make believe, I've always put god into the make believe category. While I know it is not possible to "prove" that there is no god, I think that there is no idea of god that could be posited that doesn't disprove itself with internal contradiction.

When people talk about prayer, I ask them to consider how many times people have prayed for world peace.

--IMM

[sarcasmo]

14. A proud Atheist.

[eridani]

15. Non-theist

Similar to the distinction between non-literate and illiterate.

[rrneck]

16. Everybody has to believe

in something. I prefer to not have fully half of the human experience manufactured and pre packaged for my consumption. I'd rather make my own.

[cosmik debris]

17. That's an interesting statement.

"Everybody has to believe in something."

Why do I have to believe in anything? Where is the danger in doubting everything?

[rrneck]

18. That is a good

question, and the only answer I can come up with sounds like something some two bit phycobabble motivational speaker would say. But nevertheless, it takes a lot of faith in yourself to question, and that can't be a bad thing after all.

To my mind (and this is an ongoing examination), faith is little more, biologically speaking, than anticipation. The greatest evolutionary trick that humans have learned is the ability to anticipate future events based on current knowledge and a memory of past events. What are heaven and hell but the ultimate anticipation?

I don't know how one can be human and not anticipate (believe) something is or is not going to happen. We started drawing it on cave walls in Lascaux and we haven't stopped yet.

Of course, semantics plays a large part in the above...

[cosmik debris]

19. My approach is slightly different.

I try not to believe anything that I don't have to believe. If belief is optional, I opt out.

Instead of believing that the sun will rise tomorrow, I take no stand on sunrise.

There is no reason to.

All those things that are beyond my influence are not worth "believing in". They are true or false without my consent.

And those things that are within my sphere of influence don't need to be "believed in". They are true or false because of my interaction, not my belief.

Of course, semantics plays a large part in the above...

[PassingFair]

23. Is there a difference between "expectation" and "belief"?

I expect that the sun will rise tomorrow....

[cosmik debris]

26. I would say

That expectation only equals belief when you insist that your expectation is inevitable or irrefutable.

In all probability, one day, the sun will explode and NOT rise in the morning. So the expectation or belief that the sun will rise is of limited value, not inevitable, and not worthy of staking my credibility on. If you want to "expect", "anticipate", or "believe in" something, you should stick to those things that are certain.

[PassingFair]

27. That makes "faith" sound even more delusional...

then I thought it was.

:evilgrin:

[cosmik debris]

28. Faith is a gamble--but not Pascal's wager.

But Pascal didn't know how to figure the odds.

He confused "probability of success" with "expected return". Then he inflated the expected return.

If he had looked only at probability of success, he would have been an atheist for sure!

[Sandrine for you]

20. Some time I feel like a pantheist, but most of the time like a

anti-theist.

[Starry Messenger]

21. Hard atheist.

Recovering Catholic. Discordian at times.

[and-justice-for-all]

22. Anti-theist Atheist...nt

[PassingFair]

24. Personally, I would describe myself as Atheist.

In public, I say Agnostic.

It sounds less harsh, and is more acceptable
to the public at large.

I see no difference between the two terms
in practice.

Neither one BELIEVES IN or WORSHIPS
a supernatural deity.

[frogmarch]

25. staunch atheist n/t

[droidamus2]

29. Didn't have the option I would have picked

so I chose Agnostic even though I usually say Agnostic with atheistic leaning. I forget who posited the idea, though I think I read it in this group somewhere, but I think along the following lines. That if absolute faith/belief is on one end of the line and absolute disbelief/non-faith is on the other that agnostic is not necessarily in the middle. One is the idea of belief or faith where Agnosticism deals with knowledge and the ability to acquire knowledge. As an agnostic I acknowledge the fact that I don't think we can 'prove' god one way or the other. When asked do I personally 'believe' there is a god I say no I don't. Conversely I think you could be a person of faith and still agnostically (is that a word?) acknowledge that there is no way to prove your position that there is a god.

[onager]

31. Fundamentalist Atheist

Just because that term seems to annoy the Respect Police in R&T. They use it as an insult, I will take it as a compliment. :evilgrin:

For me, the whole idea of gods fails on (lack of) evidence. Like many of the other posters in this thread, I did a lot of reading and thinking to get to this point.

You might even say I became an atheist the same way other people became Methodists or Buddhists. After comparing all the choices available, atheism was the only position that agreed with my observations of how the world really works.

Good seldom triumphs over evil, natural disasters do not make exceptions for church membership, and if the meek do inherit the earth, they will only inherit whatever is left over when the un-meek are done kicking their asses and stealing their retirement funds.

Speaking of R&T, I was just over there scanning the threads and saw several mentioning the "New Atheism." To repeat myself, there is no such thing. Non-believers have existed as long as believers, from Anaxagoras and the Atomists in ancient Greek, right down to the present.

The Bible even gripes about us, in a line obviously penned by some Brone Age equivalent of Billy Graham or Pat Robertson: "The fool says in his heart, there is no God." (Psalm 53:1).

[empire we are]

34. At age 7

I concluded that religion, gods and god are constructs of Man, nothing more. For 46 years nothing has overridden the logic of that 7 year old's conclusion.