Are You A Dictionary Atheist?

[JoeBobSmith]

 

[terranus]

Basically, what I'm saying is - Atheists tend to identify themselves as Atheists more often than other things they might also be (i.e. Liberal, Conservative, Libertarian, some type of professional/artist/worker, or a college student, or military, or retired or whatever) because religious people tend to do the same thing to us as well. They place emphasis on the "Atheist" part above anything else...so naturally...we do as well.

I disagree.  The "herd of cats" analogy is apt because atheists tend to be distrustful of group identities.

We do? Well damn...I wish someone had told me!  

I rather like group identities, actually. Makes it easier to know who your enemies are.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Basically, what I'm saying is - Atheists tend to identify themselves as Atheists more often than other things they might also be (i.e. Liberal, Conservative, Libertarian, some type of professional/artist/worker, or a college student, or military, or retired or whatever) because religious people tend to do the same thing to us as well. They place emphasis on the "Atheist" part above anything else...so naturally...we do as well.

I disagree.  The "herd of cats" analogy is apt because atheists tend to be distrustful of group identities.

We do? Well damn...I wish someone had told me!  

I rather like group identities, actually. Makes it easier to know who your enemies are.

Yeah, I wasn't addressing specific atheists, thus the term "tends"; your mileage may vary, to use the 'Net phrase.

But it's a pity you might designate someone an enemy simply because they're out-group.

[Whitney]

I disagree.  The "herd of cats" analogy is apt because atheists tend to be distrustful of group identities.

I don't think it's that...I know tons of atheists who are more than willing to identify with meetup groups; even going so far as to proudly wear t-shirts, logos etc related to the group.

The analogy comes in because even within those groups it's hard to get a bunch of free thinking people to agree on any one direction.  So, as with herding cats, you have to figure out what the hell the cat wants in order to end up with all the cats generally agreeing that they should head in the same direction.  Anyone who has owned a cat knows how hard it is to figure out what it takes to get a cat to want to do something.

[KDbeads]

So, as with herding cats, you have to figure out what the hell the cat wants in order to end up with all the cats generally agreeing that they should head in the same direction.  Anyone who has owned a cat knows how hard it is to figure out what it takes to get a cat to want to do something.

Pop a top to any pop top can here and you can get ALL 7 cats to do the same thing for at least 2 minutes, that's how long it takes them to realize that it was NOT cat food you just opened, just mushrooms  

[Whitney]

So, as with herding cats, you have to figure out what the hell the cat wants in order to end up with all the cats generally agreeing that they should head in the same direction.  Anyone who has owned a cat knows how hard it is to figure out what it takes to get a cat to want to do something.

Pop a top to any pop top can here and you can get ALL 7 cats to do the same thing for at least 2 minutes, that's how long it takes them to realize that it was NOT cat food you just opened, just mushrooms  

[elliebean]

So, as with herding cats, you have to figure out what the hell the cat wants in order to end up with all the cats generally agreeing that they should head in the same direction.  Anyone who has owned a cat knows how hard it is to figure out what it takes to get a cat to want to do something.

Pop a top to any pop top can here and you can get ALL 7 cats to do the same thing for at least 2 minutes, that's how long it takes them to realize that it was NOT cat food you just opened, just mushrooms  

Mention Hitler?

[spoiler:olqpscr1]He was NOT an atheist!!  :brick:[/spoiler:olqpscr1]
 

[KDbeads]

roflol

hmmm.... I'll have to think about that one for a bit

[KDbeads]

No, no I think 'Hitler was an atheist' will work........

[Davin]

No, no I think 'Hitler was an atheist' will work........

Hitler was not an atheist!

...Oh I see, it does work.

[KDbeads]

[terranus]

But it's a pity you might designate someone an enemy simply because they're out-group.

Eh...I don't necessarily make someone my enemy just because they're out of group. Perhaps I could've chosen my words better. Let's see if I can rephrase that.

I like groups because...they make it easier to guess at what viewpoints/attitudes I'll be getting upon meeting one of their members. Of course all people have differences even among the same group...but they can't have that many or else they wouldn't be part of that group, right?

[LegendarySandwich]

PZ Myers defends himself:

Last week, I made a post criticizing poor atheist arguments, and in particular, citing atheists who fall back on the limp crutch of the dictionary to justify their beliefs. This made many people upset. I have been named idiot of the week for failing to understand the meaning of atheism, and I've got one wanking manic obsessive on twitter insisting that I must make a public apology for daring to try to redefine the meaning of the word "atheism". Commenters are declaring that they are proud to be Dictionary Atheists.

They're all wrong. I'm not redefining atheism, nor am I declaring the dictionary wrong: I'm saying it is insufficient. Also, no one is a Dictionary Atheist, and the folly lies in pretending that you are one.

I do not have the power to redefine the word, and I'm also smart enough to know it. I only wish those readers had been smart enough to realize that, too. My article was not a top-down commandment (it's peculiar and revealing that so many thought it was), but was instead a bottom-up recognition of an obvious fact.

Everyone who is an atheist is so because of other, prior ideas. I'm not saying that there is one set of ideas that make for a True Atheistâ,,¢, but rather that if you claim there are not, if you pose as someone who is an atheist simply because you don't believe in gods, you are failing to consider your own philosophical foundations. Calling yourself a Dictionary Atheist is like taking pride in living an unexamined life.

That's it. And that's what really annoys me, people who can't recognize that there's more to their atheism than blind acceptance of what a dictionary says.

It's sad to see that so many atheists have something in common with Ray Comfort. As you might expect, Comfort completely distorts what I wrote to claim that I was "pointing out the non-existent foundations of atheism." Not so, of course, since I was saying the precise opposite: that atheism has strong and rich foundations, and is not simply a blanket rejection of deities.

That's what Dictionary Atheists imply. Not me.

[LegendarySandwich]

And this:

What is the matter with you people?

I am not redefining atheism. I am not adding more to the minimal definition. I am not telling you what you have to believe. I am not saying that every atheist shares the same set of beliefs beyond the minimum.

I am telling you the obvious fact that you aren't blind followers of the dictionary, and you all have reasons for being atheists...unless, of course, you're really stupid. And that you look really stupid and fool no one, especially not theists, when you go around declaring that atheism is this simplistic, bare bones belief. It isn't.

In this sense, I agree with him.

[elliebean]

My reason for being an atheist is that I stopped believing there was a god. The "rich history" behind my atheism is that I used to go to church and then I quit because I realised it was all make-believe. Wtf is this guy's problem, is he stuck in some mental loop?