Why do atheists care what religious folks believe?

Question

Why is it that Atheists have nothing better to do than hang out in the religion section and preach to believers that there is no God.

Why does it bother them that others believe?

Why do they care?

Answer 1

because non-god loves you
and doesnt want to see you burn in non-hell

Answer 2

Could you possibly have failed to notice the relentless attacks on atheists by the religious right?

Or the dramatic damage the fundamentalists (Christian and Islamic mainly) are doing to western civilization?

Or that the religious people played an instrumental role in making George Bush the President of the United States, surely the great tragic event of the past 20 years here.

If the religious folks would just leave us alone, we wouldn't care at all. But they don't, and I strongly suspect they don't even realize how much they're imposing on us.

Answer 3

Why do Christians care what atheists believe? You know that old saying "What's good for the goose is good for the gander."? I can't speak for the others, but the questions just draw me in. Besides, people should be free to talk about anything they want to - it's this little thing called freedom of speech. We have it here in America and with the internet, anybody in any country can experience it.

Answer 4

Because SOME religious folks had nothing better to do and bug these atheists day after day, telling them they will go to hell if they do not believe the "brand" of the religion they are in. Why does it bother THESE religious folks what we disbelieve?

Answer 5

I am an atheist. I do not care what religion you believe as long as you keep your religion to yourself and not try to foist it on me.

I have many better things to do than hang out on the R&S section. However, I have a deep interest in comparative religious beliefs and rituals. It is like a hobby of mine. I have developed opinions on things religious, hence it is only appropriate for me to express them in an open forum such as this.

It does not bother me one bit what others believe until they insist that I must believe as they do.

Answer 6

I don't care what other people believe if they keep it to themselves. I only care about it when they try to tell ME to believe it, too. I care when they judge me based on those beliefs. I care when they try to force me to LIVE by their beliefs. I care when I have to fight to keep someone else's religious dogma out of the laws *I* have to live by, and the science classrooms that my children are learning in. I care when people bomb abortion clinics or shoot doctors. I care when I have a cookout on a Sunday, and we can't run out and buy beer if we need to because my state doesn't sell liquor on Sundays because of someone else's religious beliefs. I care when they hold up scientific breakthroughs that can save millions of lives because of their religious beliefs. I care when I see religious whack jobs protesting at people's funerals and tormenting the already grieving families. I care because my cousin tried to commit suicide because she couldn't come to terms with her homosexuality because of her own religious beliefs, and the harsh judgements she was so afraid she'd receive from others. I care when a presidential candidate says "No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God." and not only is it considered OK that he said that, but he still gets elected. If he said something like that about ANY other race or religion, the outcry would have been deafening.
THAT'S why I care.

Answer 7

Religion has already delays the progress of humanity 1000 years. Lets not make it another 1000 years. We must overcome this superstitious belief in a magic man in the sky. It's my opinion that we must do everything in our power to put religion behind us.

When religion ruled the world, it was called the Dark Ages.

Answer 8

As so many of us have pointed out, we have no problem with you believing the grass is orange and the clouds are red and white striped or that there is a God - until you start attempting to force the rest of us to acquiesce to your belief system. You do that when you preach at us. You do that when you elect a jackass of a President who is against stem cell research. You do that when you attempt to interfere with my daughters' rights to determine for themselves their response to the abortion issue. You do that when you attempt to force public schools to teach Creationism and suppress teaching Evolution. Any time you do that, you are interfering, unjustifiably, with our rights and in our lives. When you do that, we will fight you. And we are not going to be nice about it any longer.

Answer 9

You have a misunderstanding about Atheists. Why should those of us who do not believe in god sit back and let those who are religious force their beliefs down our throats? Why should we let religious people use religion as a way to combine church and state?

Why does it bother you that we do not believe?
Are you in need of converting us because you assume that we are in need of salvation?

Answer 10

I'm guessing you're not prevented from marrying the person you love by religious fundamentalists, and that you've never lost anybody you care about to terrorist attacks or to opposition to medical research... I could go on and on.

Read Letter to a Christian Nation to understand how harmful religion is... if you think your faith could withstand it.

Answer 11

Hmm... does this qualify? Aw, what the heck.
*drink*
Actually, I don't care. What I care about is when you folks try to push your screwball beliefs into laws, or try to get your biblical fairy tales taught as scientific facts in publicly funded schools. That's when you get my attention.
Discussion and debate is essential to a lively democracy. Our freedoms under the Bill of Rights are under siege, and as long as we still have freedom of speech, I plan on speaking. Get used to it.