I think the Atheist has specific reasons for disbelieving in god. — Pantagruel
Not being brainwashed as a child, usually. — Kenosha Kid
I had absolutely zero religious training and I'm not even slightly inclined to atheism. My sense of incredulity at the magnificent complexity of the universe only reduces that further. — Pantagruel
For some, like Kant, lack of knowledge leaves room for faith. The problem here is that some mistake faith for knowledge. — Fooloso4
Probably some deep psychological trauma where they feel they were let down and abandoned. — Pantagruel
Not true; an agnostic is not going to waste time arguing against theists. — Janus
Not in my experience. I have met many agnostics who debate Christians fiercely, not on the basis of God's existence but on the basis of how a believer can possibly know and why the Christian version not Islam, etc. Most agnostics I have known have found Abrahamic faiths absurd. They are more inclined to have a soft spot for deism. — Tom Storm
What puzzles me is why people are so concerned about the metaphysical or religious beliefs of others. I think it must stem from insecurity. — Janus
If people argue against the incursion of religious ideas into the political realm they are arguing for separation of church from state, which has been the official reality since the Enlightenment in the West at least, and they are not (necessarily) arguing against theism as such. — Janus
Isn't that just an old apologist's canard? I'm sure it is not intended this way by you but it has a patronizing tone to it. Atheism equals disfunction or disruption, rather than a genuine expression of freethought — Tom Storm
I've have never yet encountered an atheist who did not treat atheism like a substitute religion, which is the ultimate irony, as I said. Yes, my comment was tongue in cheek. There may well be philosophically sincere atheists, and, if so, they probably do get drowned out by the noisy and offensive ones. If that's you, then I sincerely apologize. As I mentioned, I do think this tends to be more of a social than a philosophical issue.
How do overzealous atheists not see their dawkinsism is just a secular religious substitute!? — Protagoras
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