Ahh, we are back to
tempests in teapots I see. Atheism vs. theism.
The saddest, funniest thing about some Atheists, IMO, is how many of them sound almost exactly like fundamentalists. Here is a fun little exercise; read the two quotes below and then go to the flip and see where they come from.
Quote #1
The only way to respond to a believer is to... show him patiently yet firmly how foolish his position is. Show him, moreover, that the scientific worldview is not a credulous blind leap into the dark, but rather a logically based system of reasoning... Introduce your friends to some of the many excellent books on evolution and biology that explain this subject, teach it to them...
Quote #2
A world made secular, populated and completely run by Godless atheists who are morally corrupt, dangerously immature, often violent, sexually deviant, completely selfish... convinced Christ's servants are either stupid, evil, or dangerous, and trying for all they're worth to destroy our faith.
Okay, let's see these quotes as they originally appeared and where they came from(the words and phrases I altered for this illustration are in bold):
The only way to respond to a mocking unbeliever is to... show him patiently, kindly, yet firmly how foolish his position is. Show him, moreover, that the Christian faith is not a credulous blind leap into the dark, but a reasonable faith based on many infallible proofs or criteria of certainty (Acts 1:3)... Introduce your friends to some of the many excellent Church publications and films that address this subject, pray for them, and radiate Christian grace in your behaviour.
Taken from:
New Covenant Church of God: God's view of Atheists
A world gone bonkers, populated and completely run by a majority of people who are frankly clinically insane, dangerously immature, often violent, historically monstrous, completely irrational... convinced you're either stupid, evil, or dangerous, and hoping for all they're worth to infect you with the same mimetic virus.
Taken from:
What it's Like to be an Atheist
Calling everyone who does not share your worldview insane is not productive. My suggestion to everyone in this debate is to remember the one rule that all major religions and many secular and humanist organizations have taken on as a central moral rule in all of their teachings:
Treat others as you wish to be treated.
If you as a believer or nonbeliever want respect for your viewpoint, you must be willing to extend that respect to other viewpoints. If you're reading this, odds are you have suffered that disrespect, that contempt of your beliefs from evangelicals or fundamentalists at one time or another. People who read Daily Kos tend to be targets of that attitude.
That is why it is especially disappointing to encounter that attitude here, just coming from a different direction. We should know better.
UPDATED: I changed the phrase The saddest, funniest thing about Atheists to The saddest, funniest thing about some Atheists because the original version way overgeneralized. My apologies for that.