Re: [luv-talk] persecuted Atheists

Rick Moen wrote:
> Quoting Russell Coker (russell@coker.com.au):
>
>> http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/d2239780-4d4e-11e1-8741-00144feabdc0.html
>>
>> Interesting article published by the Financial Times about the
>> persecution of Atheists in the US.
> 2.  Outside those areas, e.g., California, organised atheists
> characteristically piss and moan about alleged persecution and lack of
> acceptance that upon examination turn out to be imaginary or strictly
> elsewhere (i.e., the Bible Belt) or a mischaracterisation of the broader
> public not enjoying the company of one-note ideologues (including but
> not limited to crusading atheists), _but_ they nurse a persecution
> complex in lieu of more interesting hobbies.
>
> As a personal observation, in the USA the people who identify themselves
> as atheists tend statistically towards severe dickishness, which is the
> main reason why I refer to myself -- if the subject comes up, which it
> should not (a point I'll return to) as 'non-religious', so as to not be
> associated with them.
>
As a frequent attendee of such non-societies as 'the Existentialist 
Society' and 'the Atheist Society' ;
(they are lecture forums having no formal membership; much to the 
frustration of a small number of attendees);
I can confirm that militant atheists exist in Australia and at least one 
of the attendee's (myself);
shares Rick's attitude to them. I would suspect that others from the 
group of attendees which includes Buddhists;
ex-devotee's of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a fundamentalist Christian, the 
occasional Muslem;
religious and non-religious Jews as well as the expected humanists, 
secularists, atheists and agnostics like myself;
also find militant atheists 'embarrassing'.
As an aside can I comment that since theists have never really found 
common cause;
I am quite bemused that atheists might think they can !;

regards Rohan McLeod


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