I was so looking forward to joining.

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think. Maybe a need for validation? Maybe a defensive reaction? I will never forget the ugly rictus on the face of a woman who was a born-again who heard me say I had read about the life of Buddha in my Tokyo hotel room. I worked there quite a bit in the '90's, life and teaching of Buddha was found in most bedside tables, instead of a bible. I did not see Buddhism as a religion, as such, just a quite lovely way to go through life.
She spat out "You have not been taken in by THOSE people, I hope!" Told her I had not been taken in by anyone - I was still an atheist. She had already asked me about the personal lord and savior thing. My answer to that, always, is no, I had an NDE and it was not religious in the least, and there was absolutely no reason to discuss it. Always cracks me up when folks say and NDE is all in my head. Hmmmmm.....and where, I ask, is religious belief? Which is total hearsay. Total hearsay.

Anyway, I am not sure why the ugliness and condescension, but maybe insecurity about their faith or something, fear of The Other, whatever. I do think that if some people need a bible in order to be moral, then good on that bible.

they can't be believers but they seem to have so little self-respect that they want/need all the believers to think that they're really nice groovy people. So they turn on their fellow unbelievers - sort of, "Well, I'm an atheist BUT hey, look, I like you goodly people of faith more than I like atheists (or, indeed, myself)".

Though I would think the religious background would cause more self hate than it does defensiveness of believers.

I think having spent their entire childhood learning that atheists are all immoral, evil people and still carry that baggage with them into adulthood. They can't be like THOSE PEOPLE. No they are a different kind of atheist. They are BETTER...

So they spend all their time and effort trying to prove to the world (and more importantly) and to themselves that they are different. They are the GOOD kind of atheist. They are the ones understanding of people of faith (as if many of us didn't used to be believers as well) and defend them from the BAD kind of atheist.

Thus, they are always bashing other atheists and defending believers no matter what the position. The atheist can never be right, and the believer can never be wrong.

Of course, this is not to say that we can't say something out of bounds occasionally, or that we all agree on everything. But rather this is my thoughts on those particular non-believers who NEVER find anything wrong with religion and disagree with ANY critique on religion no matter how well reasoned. The ones who SOLELY attack other non-believers.

NOTE: It needs to be said I am not a psychologist and am just speculating.

I take the "live and let live" approach....as long as they take that same approach. I don't care if they believe. That is their right. I just see my right to be free of religion as important too.

I will also say that there is a certain social bond that having religion allows people that is not there for me. And that is unfortunate.

I was also raised with religion, went to Sunday School, Bible School, belonged to the Church Youth Group, and went to a religious summer camp every year. And I enjoyed it.

But I don't fit into the "faitheist" category. I am not going to be critical of atheists. I am not sympathetic to believers. I really wonder how many of these faitheists there are.

Can you tell I love that term?

Some people just have to have religion and that's alright with me as long as they don't try to mix it with public policy.

My wife is a believer, although she has stopped going to church. She claims she doesn't like the new priest, but I think I've had some influence on her and she certainly likes being able to sleep in on Sundays.

But she was talking tonight about a kid who had a near death experience and had allegedly come back from it knowing all kinds of things he couldn't possibly know without divine intervention. It turns out that this all came to light 4 years after the occurrence when the kid was 8, and as you might guess I became even more skeptical. Then I just dropped it and said, "Baby, you don't want me to pick this apart."

There's some part of her that has to believe that kind of stuff. Fortunately for me, it is not a dominant aspect of her personality and we have much more in common that heavily outweighs that. She feels exactly the same way I do about people trying to mix religion with politics.

I'm definitely not on a mission, but I will let the nice Mormon boys know that we are indeed devout Satanists when they come knocking on the door.

Currently showing on Pay-Per-View, so I'm tormented by its trailer frequently.

Based on the 2010 book co-written by Lynn Vincent. Who also co-wrote 2 books with Sarah Palin. Do I need to say any more?

Well, I'll say this - you'll have lots of fun if you do the internet search "heaven is for real fake phony bullshit."

I have only seen anything about that movie/book one time, and I laughed my ass off at the kid's description of Jesus. It was very detailed. He described the standard pictures of Jesus we all see everywhere. If this kid would have described Jesus as a darker-skinned, brown eyed, Middle Eastern man, I might have got goosebumps.

the kid also described Jesus as having holes in his hands...rather than his wrists.

about the book/movie. I really really really don't want to.

The arrogant, self-satisfied, self-righteous bullies, I take great pleasure in mocking them.

I feel more sorry for them than I feel the need to mock. But that doesn't mean that I don't tell them to get out of my face and my government.

Of course certain individual believers open themselves up for ridicule when their actions so clearly contradict what they claim to believe.

Every idea, whether it be a scientific theory, or a claimed revelation from a god, should be subject to analysis, critique, and yes, sometimes ridicule.

...fear of being confronted by the faulty system they have built their life on and are dependent on it. It fills all those scary unknowns they can't deal with. If they weren't so dependent they would not have the fear/anger of facing reality. They also would lose the fear of the unknown and replace it with the wonder of the universe and the joy of seeking real answers to the questions.

There's something sinister about the way religion creates fear, undermines intellect, and allows satisfaction with mythical answers.

A blog that apparently stopped in March 2013, but is still up.

The blogger is a former Evangelical Xian who is trying to "come out" as an atheist.

I just stumbled across his blog, so haven't read very much. But some of it sounds interesting.

Those of you who frequently battle in The Other Group may want to look at one of his posts: "Why I Am Not A Liberal Christian." Heh-heh-heh...

http://respectfulatheist.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2013-01-01T00:00:00-05:00&updated-max=2014-01-01T00:00:00-05:00&max-results=2

That same person can't figure out who it could possibly apply to.

Guess it hit a little close to home for someone, huh?

who found themselves feeling rather exposed by that description of Coyne's. Why else would supposedly rational people continue to defend the practice of exorcism, and to argue desperately for its continuation, rather than simply for getting legitimate medical and psychological attention for those who need it, and disavowing the existence of actual demonic possession?

And I find it interesting that none of the folk ranting about this in the other group have actually addressed Coyne's core contention, the existence of faitheists whose cognitive dissonance has them needing desperately for there to be something mystical or wooish to believe in at the same time they're trying to appear rational and avoid amused chuckles from people they want respect from.

I think there is also a mirror group slightly on the other side of the fence, people who do the churchy thing because of habit or because being at least nominally religious is socially necessary, but who don't really believe much or any of what they confess to on Sunday.