I originally posted this in the Atheist/agnostic Forum, but thought it might work here as well. Why are people atheists? Since I'm not one, it may be presumptuous to comment, but by doing so, I may piss enough people off to stimulate some discussion. From your posts I can identify at least three reasons: (1) the belief that religion is stifling; (2) the belief that religion is dangerous; (3) the belief that science and secular humanism do it better. The idea that religion is stifling is the main theme of Nietzche's writings and his "God is Dead" thesis. The notion that religion is dangerous is central to Harris' The End of Faith, which blames religion for 911. The belief that science and secular humanism produce better results and that religion is therefore unnecessary is brought by Dawkins, and also by Dennett. Are there other reasons I'm leaving out? In answer to these objections, I'd argue that religion is not necessarily stifling, nor dangerous, nor incompatible with science and humanism, but that the prevailing fundamentalist forms of it are, especially the Christian religious right and militant Islam. And the prevailing liberal/progressive alternatives are in danger of becoming too abstract,bland, sophisticated, and ridiculous to be effective as antidotes.
I count myself an atheist because I see the notion of god as unnecessary and improbable. There is no reason for me to believe in god, so I don't. Simple as that. If god were to show his existance, I might change my mind, but until that day, I don't believe that he is there. I would say that generally, religion is stifling because you subscribe to a particular belief, without using a logical train of thought. Therefore, when shown something opposing a belief, many people will simply reject the unpleasant thought outright. You've trained yourself to hold something sacred that should not be held sacred - your belief. I would not say religion is dangerous EXCEPT in the sense mentioned above. It is usually more intellectually dangerous than otherwise, but when so many people are willing to stake so much on so little, terrible things happen. I think 911 was undoubtedly the product of religion. Try an atheist is harder to convince to die for something like that. Honor, sure. Doing what is right, sure. Defending loved ones, sure. But to send a message to "infidels?" I am willing to bet that had those men been atheist they would not have done what they did. And I do think science does it better. Science can be argued for or against using factual and logical premises, and is falsifyable. To paraphrase Carl Sagan, a scientist can look at evidence that goes against his belief, see that the new evidence is superior, and change his mind. Religion does not work that way.
