Thoughts on extreme atheism...

Oh boy I've been putting this off for a while now. For anyone who wants a little context read up on this http://maiotaku.com/mytopics/565/mytopics/27133?page=1 And this hits a very sour note for me. Now let's get this out of the way right now, I DON'T hate atheists. Not even close. I know full well that there are plenty of atheists who are pretty cool dudes/dudettes. Personally I've considered myself an agnostic theist, believing there is a higher power but staying away from anything to do with mainstream religion(Francis is doing very well to change my thoughts on the matter) However I do pay attention and research things such as Ba'hai, various eastern religions and even paganism. The ones I absolutely can not stand, are "Militant Atheists" or Materialistic Atheists. The ones who love to shove down your throat why you are a complete and total ignorant idiot. I have run into them time and time again, and one thing remains constant. They are literally no different from the religious zealots they claim to hate. It's funny if you think about it. What's funny is they seem to take this to a personal level, and this turns from a disdain of religion and turns into a hatred of those who practice it. Hearing things such as faith and belief is a mental disease, or religious people should be gunned down or at best trying to treat those of faith as second class citizens. Yes these are things i hear people say. If you do not consider yourself this then more power to ya. Just someone comparing that to me kinda set me off. Seriously just because I like fedoras doesn't mean I'm an asshole.

I'm an agnostic leaning atheist. I don't necessarily think it's what a person believes or thinks that makes them obnoxious and overbearing as you described though. I think it's more of an ignorance thing. Christians can be overbearing just the same as atheists. Christians can also be rude as well. This isn't to bash either one, just observations. I know cool Christians and atheists. The best way to handle me is to be relax about it. Oh you think this way? That's cool. The problem is both sides think they are right. Rarely do either allow room for other possibilities.

There are a few religions threads on here if you search them out. https://maiotaku.com/mytopics/561/mytopics/25021?mytopic_id=561&page=2

Precisely, the wisest person is one who can admit he DOESN'T know everything. When someone gets such a sense of absolutism, that they completely disregards anything that doesn't conform to their is view point and refuse to meet others halfway, not only do they become incredibly frustrating to talk to but at the end of it you just feel like you wasted your time. They think they figured everything out? No they didn't and they probably never will. Nobody probably will, but that's why it's important for people to try and seriously understand what others are coming from rather than just write them off.

I am personally agnostic - and I do respect everyone's individual creed and/or religion. I think the major point of contention is how we treat one another in relation to that. If you judge people because they have different ideals and then propagate hate and animosity then you do a disservice to everyone. Extremists with any affiliation do this (Athiests, Agnostics, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, etc). A belief, regardless of what it is, is awesome, especially if you feel you've become a better person for it.

Atheist. I wouldn't classify myself as militant but I'm quick to point out someone's religious hypocrisy. Christians indoctrinated themselves into society at the cost of everyone else: Muslims, tribal religions, Roman polytheism, Judaism and atheism etc. And that is something I'm not okay with. But, I wouldn't stoop to level of an Islamist or Christian extremist and threaten physical harm. No, I fight my battles with the keyboard exclusively. The worst I've done is DDOS'd an anti-gay Christian church website and that made their host suspend them, and then called the SWAT on the pastor of said church, who was ironically in the middle of a heated argument with his wife when the police arrived.

That's called extreme and illegal, unless you had a real legal reason to get the police involved. I can handle someone not believing as I do just fine. I can't handle when someone clearly has a personal agenda that clearly goes beyond just personal belief. There's never a need for violence or stooping to another's level.

I am an atheist. I do respect others and whatever they think lets them sleep best at night. Although the only point I see in religion is to give away responsibilities, such as to reflect on oneselves actions and so on. Now as I said, everyone can do as he pleases. As long as they keep their shit to themselves. Religion is a private thing. People need to treat it that way. Everyone who, for example, publicly wears any kind of religious gear of any sort, and isn't by any chance a monk on vacation or something, is my personal enemy. I think people need to educate themselves, grow up, and take their lives in their own hands. Without (as I said before) handing the responsibility for their existence and day-to-day problems to a god or something.

And even if their god or whatever exists, how dare people think their little shitty lives and problems should concern such a being... That's selfish and dumb in its own right.