Being an atheist is like...

[Givemeareason]

Some people think they are grownup and mature when they are just arrogant old pricks.  :fU: Solitary

Young pricks, old pricks...  At the rate you're going I think I am losing this race.

[Solitary]

 A man never reveals his character more vividly than when portraying the character of another, and it is with trifles, and when he is off guard, that a man best reveals his true character, or a man so eager to be in advance of his age that he pretends to be in advance of himself. This idealist is incorrigible: if he is thrown out of heaven he makes an  ideal of his hell.  Solitary

[aitm]

That's because when they see us in action we look like a bunch of hate spewing assholes. 

you run with the wrong group of atheists. The ones I know are pretty damn nice. Maybe that is why you are like you are eh? Find better friends.

[TomFoolery]

you run with the wrong group of atheists. The ones I know are pretty damn nice. Maybe that is why you are like you are eh? Find better friends.

I don't know, the few atheist acquaintances I do have seem to have giant chips on their shoulders and hate all religion. I mentioned to someone once that I liked something the pope said and all of a sudden, I wasn't "godless" enough. It was like the lack of religion thing all over again.

Most everyone here seems pretty laid back, but the atheists I know in real life are just as militant as the religious types.

[PickelledEggs]

My dad sometimes does a guilt trip about how "I just have to believe" or "you wonder why you're depressed, but you don't believe in anything" kind of stuff. He's backed off mostly, but occasionally it creeps back.

I should also note that in addition to me being an atheist, I am also a viscous skeptic... and yes there is a difference between an atheist and a skeptic atheist. I know quite a few VERY gullible atheists irl. (see James Randi quote in signature) My mom believes in faith healing and we've gotten in arguments that I am not open-minded because she doesn't understand the difference between what open-minded is and flat-out gullible.

Other than that and my frequent unrelated butting of heads with my dad, my relationship with my parents are good.

I have went through some friends that I am very happy about the outcome though. When someone says gleefully with soul-less eyes that they believe that I am going to suffer for eternity, you have to reconsider why you are friends with them IMO. (and make sure you get out of their car because a lunatic shouldn't be allowed to have a driver's license.)

Anyway, Weclome Tomfoolery!

Glad to have you aboard!

[aitm]

I don't know, the few atheist acquaintances I do have seem to have giant chips on their shoulders and hate all religion. I mentioned to someone once that I liked something the pope said and all of a sudden, I wasn't "godless" enough. It was like the lack of religion thing all over again.

Most everyone here seems pretty laid back, but the atheists I know in real life are just as militant as the religious types.

hating religion and being "hate spewing assholes" I believe are quite different eh?

[SGOS]

I don't know, the few atheist acquaintances I do have seem to have giant chips on their shoulders and hate all religion. I mentioned to someone once that I liked something the pope said and all of a sudden, I wasn't "godless" enough. It was like the lack of religion thing all over again.

Most everyone here seems pretty laid back, but the atheists I know in real life are just as militant as the religious types.

My personal experience is almost the opposite of yours.  While this forum might be less caustic than others, it is not as laid back as the few atheists I know personally, which amounts to roughly about 10 or so.  Outside of this forum, I don't discuss atheism much with my atheist friends.  They would if I brought up the subject, but mostly for them discussing theism is a waste of time, and discussing atheism just isn't necessary.  Discussing either is simply unimportant to them.  Their focus lies elsewhere.

One of the reasons I like this forum, is that it is a rare opportunity for me to discuss the topic.  I think it's an important topic.  My atheist friends on the outside don't treat it as important.  At least no more important than the topic of hair color.  In some ways, I envy that attitude.  It's kind of like they just want to get on with the rest of their lives and theism/atheism is mostly irrelevant to that goal.

I think theism/atheism might be more important to me because I feel fucked over by my religious upbringing.  I was fed a lot of bullshit, and I still resent it.  Most of my atheist friends just grew up as atheists.  My closest friend, from way back in my college days, was raised a Catholic, but he never bought into it, and his family was apparently pretty half assed about the religion anyway, so it was treated more like:  "Yeah, we are Catholics, but you don't really think we believe all that shit do you?"  That particular friend has always treated theism as a joke, rather than a harmful threat.  He just doesn't care about it.

[Feral Atheist]

Being an atheist is like .... being free from the ignorance and superstitions of long dead goat herders.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

What is being an atheist like to you, in terms of your personal relationships?

Three of my wives were believers in one fashion or another. They were okay with me not believing. Current wife is a non-believer, so there's no issue there.

As for everyday life me being atheistic came up once or twice in the first 57 years of my life. Otherwise, it was just one more thing that I am.

[Munch]

Three of my wives were believers in one fashion or another. They were okay with me not believing. Current wife is a non-believer, so there's no issue there.

As for everyday life me being atheistic came up once or twice in the first 57 years of my life. Otherwise, it was just one more thing that I am.

It would always worry me, if I was in a relationship with someone who was religious. Based on my aunts religious tenancies and how its distanced me from her as a result, I'd worry about someone close to me being that way, since its in my nature to question and even argue points across in day to day religious vs atheist/gay news and reports I read.

Luckily my bfs not religious, neither is any of my close family. 

[Gawdzilla Sama]

It would always worry me, if I was in a relationship with someone who was religious.

"always"?

[stromboli]

I have different frames of reference from being Mormon and then Christian and now atheist. Atheism was not something I looked at back when as a "thing" but in retrospect I would say it went from being potentially demonic to merely misinformed to wtf, who cares? as much as anything.