why do some atheists take their beliefs way too far?

Question

They change their avatars to Atheist related things, and diss other religions any chance they get? Could they back off?

Answer 1

The answers one sees in this forum represent a triumph of flippancy over rigor. These flippant persons that answer tend to have not formally studied the matters being asked for several years; rather they enjoy mocking or proving that they really have no value to add to the answer.

Funny thing is, you don't see any persons of faith piling on or being flippant in forums that are focused upon atheism, such as the Usenet talk.origins forum at
http://groups.google.com/group/talk.origins/topics?hl=en

Sadly, the questions are sometimes poorly formed or are laden with underlying bias that tells the reader that no cogent and rigorous answer will satisfy the asker.

Want another perspective? See Erika R's excellent and cogently written answer to a similar question as to why atheists like to hang around Christian discussion forums at http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AvfsfC_oV9b71eDhBO9.t8jsy6IX?qid=20070214222750AABkZwl&show=7#profile-info-wudNsFgZaa

Just keep asking questions in an objective manner and you will sometimes get useful responses. I try to answer questions so structured with reasoned and rigorous responses.

Ask Mr. Religion
Answering your questions about religion since 1994
http://www.askmrreligion.com

Answer 2

Here are some of the material they read:

The Quotable Atheist: Ammunition for Non-Believers, Political Junkies, Gadflies, and Those Generally Hell-Bound (Paperback)
Jack Huberman

Fighting Words: A Toolkit for Combating the Religious Right by Robin Morgan

God: The Failed Hypothesis. How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist (Hardcover)
by Victor J Stenger

Atheist Universe: The Thinking Person's Answer to Christian Fundamentalism Paperback by David Mills

Atheist Manifesto: The Case Against Christianity, Judaism, and Islam

The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster

It is my opinion that...some of the atheists and agnostics are very sincere and do not set out to diss others or tear down what they believe. These people, like us, I do feel are sincere and certain in what they believe.

There are some others who simply are jumping on a band wagon or following a fad or even possibly...frightened they may be wrong.

PEG

Answer 3

The making of Avatars with Atheist themes is not "taking things too far"...

Neither is criticism of religions, provided it is based on logical analysis and not on simple insults and emotion.

That said, I agree that some Atheists here take the "Atheist meme" way too far and essentially run around insulting everything to do with religion because it is religion.

EDIT: Mr. Religion - Usenet Talk Origins is NOT an Atheist forum. It's a forum for discussion Evolution and Creationism.

I suppose I can guess your position on the Evolution/Creation debate now, can't I?

Answer 4

Look at some of the answers here. Some have had bad ordeals and then are preached to that God/Jesus is love. Be thankful all they're doing is making some atheist avatar and asking some questions some might not like. It's not as though they're hunting people down and burning them at stake b/c they don't believe in evolution!

Answer 5

Yawn. Why do some Christians. Why does anybody.

The answer is: Because some people are so constituted that they enjoy conflict - or, if you will, "debate."

Their "atheism" or "Christianity" or what-have-you is almost totally incidental. In 99 cases out of 100, their religious affiliation or lack thereof has been determined not by personal inquiry and investigation, but by their childhood programming; so that everything they have to say on the topic is simply knee-jerk.

Again, some atheists are bigots; and some Christians are actually capable of morality. "You never can tell!"

Answer 6

I love answering questions with questions...

Why do some religious fanatics take their beliefs way too far?
They change their avatars to religiously related things, and diss other people any chance they get? Could they back off?

If you answer that one you will deserve an answer to your question...indeed, you will have answered your own question and saved yourself 5 points.

Answer 7

It just shows that extremism and intolerance are everywhere. It is not an ideological thing. There are unwise people of all beliefs. Ignorance is usually the deciding factor which produces intolerance. The greater the level of ignorance, the greater the level of intolerance. This is true of atheists, agnostics, Christians , Muslims and any belief system. Don't worry about it. Just set a better example by being respectful yourself. If we fight fire with fire we all get burned. Jesus is the Prince of Peace so I choose to promote Peace through mutual understanding.

Answer 8

If your faith is rock solid, then you shouldn't have any problem with atheists challenging your views.

Your question implies otherwise, though.

Besides, even if an atheist says something you may not agree with, it often provides an opportunity for you to examine your faith critically and perhaps discover new insights.

So in that sense it's a real shame that you view atheists in the manner you do. It's a sign of an incurious mind.

Answer 9

Atheists don't have beliefs. They have a lack of belief in extraordinary claims which lack evidence. There shouldn't even be a word for atheism. After all, we don't have words for people who don't belief that Elvis is still alive. We don't have words for people who don't believe that aliens from another world are flying UFOs and abducting cattle. Atheism is nothing more than he noise sane, rational people make in the presence of absurd delusions.

Answer 10

Are you serious! Atheists are a major minority in this country. The last time I check Atheists were not the ones responsible for the Crusades or any of the major world wars.