Oh, the stridency of those new atheists. And everyone knows they are just as fundamentalist as Bible-thumping rednecks. After all, religion just wants people to be nice. Why can't they leave religion alone instead of getting all het up every time someone mentions God?
This is an increasingly common trope on Twitter and elsewhere. So-called atheists accuse the outspoken among us of giving atheism a bad name by gratuitously attacking those to whom religion means a great deal. They exhort us (in a completely unstrident manner, naturally) to 'Shut the f--- up'.
First, outspoken atheism is a reactionary position. If there were no religion, there would be no atheism. As some atheists (including the eloquent and crystal-clear @MrOzAtheist) have succinctly put it: If theists shut up, you will no longer hear from atheists. If atheists shut up, you will still hear from theists.
The atheist sees no point in contriving belief in anything with no evidence for its existence. There is ample evidence that Julius Caesar existed. There is no evidence that any kind of god exists or has ever existed. There is plenty of evidence for belief in gods, but no evidence whatsoever of gods themselves.
Why, then, do we argue with theists? Ought we not to leave them alone with their private beliefs, which are very important to them and do the rest of us no harm?
If the last subordinate clause were true, then atheists would indeed have no reason to interrupt the prayerful reflections of the pious. But it is not true. Believers simply do not leave alone those who do not share their faith. Religious moralists seek to influence the lives of others by denying them same-sex marriage, abortion and divorce. Theists strive to indoctrinate innocent children by having pernicious, superstition-based creation myths taught as equivalent to scientific fact in schools. Christians, Jews and Muslims hack off parts of defenceless children's genitals in barbaric acts that escape classification as child abuse only because of the unwarranted respect afforded to religion by society.
New atheists call for an end to that undeserved respect. Let religion earn respect on merit, as must any other viewpoint in public discourse. If religions are indeed handed down from an all-powerful god, they ought to be able to stand up to scrutiny and robust debate.
As for offence caused to believers, to hell with that. If you are offended by my or others' comments, get over it. There is no automatic right not to be offended. I am offended when I hear children as young as five refer to Jews as apes and pigs. I am offended when I am told that mankind received all the knowledge we will ever need in the form of a verbally recollected recitation to an unlettered peasant in the year 610, supposedly the unalterable and final words of God.
Religion makes bold claims with breathtakingly arrogant certitude. Do you say that we are not allowed to respond to those claims? Why not?
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