On the whole however, the vocal atheism we see today is a response to the growing normalcy of religion in the public sphere of Western democracies. Religion has always been a rallying point for those seeking wealth and power, but after the separation of church and state became enshrined in the laws of all democratic nations, faith became a personal decision, something confined to the home and church, and not used as a tool for dismantling the secular rationalism that people have fought and died for since the Renaissance. No more, however. Now it is the wildest wet dream of the fundamentalists to create new theocracies, and to forcefully cut off dissenters at the knees.

People who scoff at the “we’re fighting a war” mentality clearly don’t understand the lengths to which religious zealots will go to achieve their ends. Here is where the Dawkinses and Myerses are most useful. “Crackergate” was a juvenile stunt, but its purpose wasn’t only to make fun of Catholics; the backlash, the death threats, the abuse he took over it highlights the danger we’re in. THAT was the message. Like a skilled practitioner of jujitsu, PZ used the Catholics’ zeal against them, exposed the violence behind a supposedly peaceful faith, and provided a very good reason for those who were already questioning their Catholicism to abandon it.

Right now, people openly declaring their atheism or agnosticism make up at most 1-2% of the population, but those who are indifferent or undecided are in the 15-20% range. Accomodationists, over a long period of time, *might* get some moderate religious people to abandon their faith. But in the meantime, the so-called Four Horsemen are making vocal atheists out of those who are indifferent, undecided, or religious by default (having been born into a faith that they now question). To fight superstition, we need people to stand up to its dominance, defend our hard-won freedoms, and highlight the evil that is perpetrated by those with faith, in accordance with their beliefs or against them.

So we may need two types of atheists…but I’m not convinced that Cosby was any better than Chris Rock for African Americans. Cosby wanted to show that Blacks were typical people, and Rock wanted to point out the bullshit they go through, and they both reached different types of people.

If you are scared of theist reactionaries then you are missing the point. Gay Pride parades don’t convince many homophobes by themselves, but by being out there they are becoming ‘normal’, especially to the younger generations who don’t remember when gays were scared and closeted.

The only difference between the ‘come out’ gay movement and the new atheist movement is that there’s a better chance of our oppressors, or people on the sidelines, becoming one of us. But our main point should not be to convert but to announce ourselves, and let people seek truth on their own, because most Christians don’t realize that atheists are not depressed and troubled people.

The Emperor has no clothes, and the New Atheists like to say so. For some people that will work…others are so emotionally invested in their faith that they may need lighter commentary to provoke the intellectual honesty required to acknowledge the possibility of nonbelief.

I’ve read many stories of people converting when reading the ‘replies’ to Dawkins, and realizing their own side’s arguments were absurd. So I can accept that accomodationists have a purpose, but I’m not convinced they are better, though they may be the one’s needed to say ‘it’s okay to question what your parents told you’

That depends a lot on the context.

No shit.

I have a few nieces that are very religious. They know that their Aunt Dietra is a heathen, but they love me anyway. None of them are comfortable with me speaking against what they have been taught, so I don’t go there. But I have been able to get them to sit still and really listen to the many reasons why atheism isn’t the horrible thing that they’ve been lead to believe and that atheists aren’t evil immoral baby eaters (Hemant as the exception). I’m hoping that this gentle approach will get them to one day allow me to probe a little more deeply into the truth of what they have been taught.

Airstrike:

We must have the “public face of atheism” so that new or newly out of the closet non-believers can see that there are others like them. These men and women have the tools and platform to fight the big religious organizations.

Metalhead and gearhead are not derogatory terms

That depends a lot on the context. Now, has “faith-head” ever been used in a context that indicates that the term could be positive or neutral?

I would. I’d also think that it was a poor attempt at an insult, maybe a play on the kiddie slur “poopy-head” or the drug slang “coke-head” or the racial slur “rag-head,” but an attempt at an insult nonetheless.

Despite an explanation by Dawkins to the contrary that I’m pretty sure you’ve been told of before. Metalhead and gearhead are not derogatory terms, and there are a host of other “-heads” that are not insults. Rather than try to understand you’d rather keep on misrepresenting someone because that makes it easier to justify your bogus claims about them.

“If you are willing to accommodate your beliefs to fit the facts, then we can accommodate you, even if you are not always successful.”