Atheist Leader

[Atheon]

I don't like belonging to groups.

Join the club!

[Jesus]

There is no movement.
atheism is the individual realization that there is no god. Welcome.

^ Just because a group of people believe in the same thing does not make it a religion.

[bada94]

There is no movement.
atheism is the individual realization that there is no god. Welcome.

^ Just because a group of people believe in the same thing does not make it a religion.

Yeah, except that we do NOT believe in the same thing, we LACK belief  

[ChillyWilly]

no atheists don't need a leader, a church needs a leader, a religion needs a leader, but that's the thing about Atheist we don't need any of that, because it isn't necessary. Being Atheist means the disbelief in anything supernatural, meaning we don't believe in a god, and there are churches that are there to scam people who believe in god, the moment we decide to become a sort of a church and give the title of leader to people is the day we are becoming our enemy,.

[stromboli]

Try swapping mentor for leader and see where that gets you. I don't recognize leaders, but there are certainly people who have influenced me.

This is an example of why atheism is hard to pin down. We keep trying to quantify it in the same manner as other institutions, i.e. religion or politics. Lack of belief is something we agree on, it doesn't constitute a body of laws or a dogma that can be expressed in those terms.

[Broede]

At first, I was ready to jump on the "we don't need leaders", "we're not a group" bandwagon.  However, I decided not to go with the knee-jerk reaction and give this some thought.

Yes, atheism is not a group in and of itself, but neither is Christianity.  Christianity is simply the acceptance of the claim of the Judeo-Christian god and the practice thereof.  You don't have to organize to be a Christian.  You don't have to belong to a group to worship.  However, their faith, their ideals and their bible compel them to spread this belief at any cost.  They organize to enact legislation from the pulpit.  They elect leaders that steal our liberties and our privacy.  Could you imagine if, one day, they elected someone that threw out secularism from the constitution and demanded a Christian state?  Imposed Martial law?  Just think about it.  Yes, I know, it's far-fetched and 99% unlikely to happen.  But don't kid yourself for one minute thinking that they wouldn't do it if they could.

The Christian movement seeks to destroy us, as well.  How?  By looking for clever ways to trick even the most intelligent of non-believers into ardent worshipers.  By convincing their Borg-like followers to ridicule and humiliate us at every turn.  By touting skewed facts in their favor, such as how they've managed to fleece the majority of the population.  By silencing us whenever we speak our minds in public forums, or simply shouting over us until we get tired of dealing with it.  "There are no martyrs amongst atheists", I once read (or something similar).  Well, maybe there needs to be.

So atheism isn't a group.  So what?  Do you really enjoy watching the world go crazy around you?  Don't you get tired of being seated at the kid's table when you're likely one of the wisest, most mature people at the party?  Most importantly, aren't we all getting sick of fundies telling us what we can and can't do with our lives?  And the fact that many Christians are secretly jealous of the "sins" we freely commit is irrelevant.  Get out of the government, get out of my school, get out of my, get out of my back yard and certainly GET OUT OF MY BEDROOM!

Yes, we only have one life.  Perhaps we have a responsibility with that life to make sure that those who come after us don't live as terribly as those that came long before us (see: the Dark Ages).  Just because the fundies aren't going after the freedoms YOU care about right now doesn't mean they won't do so one day down the road.  And when they do... don't go screaming "who was there to protect me?".

[Plu]

Organising a gang to fight back against religion is exactly the wrong approach. The only thing that happens when you put someone in charge of a large group of people, is that they get corrupted and use that power for their own benefit. That's how religions start. That's how things go down the shitter.

Leading a group of atheists is (and should be) like herding cats. Having a mind of our own and making our own decisions is what got us where we are now. The last thing we should do is take that away again by organising into a hierarchy.

Also, there's a difference between fighting something and organising to fight something. The former is done a lot. The latter isn't neccesary and probably won't help either.

[frosty]

As an individual Atheist myself, I would not recognize a "leader" that claims to have some type of authority over Atheists. If he/she tried to tell me what to do or think, I would simply ignore them.

Every single Atheist on this planet is different. The only thing we share, if anything, is the lack of a belief in any deity(ies). That's where the line is drawn and if anybody wants to try to become a "leader" of Atheists, they will find it a very cold and dark path on which to tread.

[Brian37]

Try swapping mentor for leader and see where that gets you. I don't recognize leaders, but there are certainly people who have influenced me.

This is an example of why atheism is hard to pin down. We keep trying to quantify it in the same manner as other institutions, i.e. religion or politics. Lack of belief is something we agree on, it doesn't constitute a body of laws or a dogma that can be expressed in those terms.

Nor should they be expressed in those terms. There is no "right way" to be an atheist. It is reasonable, even outside the issue of labels, to desire a civil society based on laws made by consent and review and the ability to change them. Other than that, even atheists, are still individuals, with different politics, different likes and dislikes.

[Youssuf Ramadan]

I don't believe in unicorns, but I don't see the need to join a group as such, let alone elect a leader for that group.

I'd say that forming a 'movement' just gives the wingnuts a target.  While some may revel in that, I personally don't feel disposed towards providing the loons with a focus for their angst.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

When the little aliens land they'll say, 'Take me to your leader.' and sadly we'll have none so back to space they'll go in search of people who believe in them.

[Broede]

I don't believe in unicorns, but I don't see the need to join a group as such, let alone elect a leader for that group.

I'd say that forming a 'movement' just gives the wingnuts a target.  While some may revel in that, I personally don't feel disposed towards providing the loons with a focus for their angst.

People who believe in unicorns aren't destroying our society from the ground up.  And atheists/atheism aren't targets now?  Are you paying attention to the world around you at all?  The more people who claim atheism, the louder the right-wing gets.  I wouldn't be surprised if so-called Christians started shooting atheists in the streets just to martyr themselves in the name of their horrific god.

[stromboli]

As an individual Atheist myself, I would not recognize a "leader" that claims to have some type of authority over Atheists. If he/she tried to tell me what to do or think, I would simply ignore them.

Every single Atheist on this planet is different. The only thing we share, if anything, is the lack of a belief in any deity(ies). That's where the line is drawn and if anybody wants to try to become a "leader" of Atheists, they will find it a very cold and dark path on which to tread.

^this. Having lived most of my life as a Mormon, I am frankly wary of the idea of leaders. Leaders who are appointed or elected is one thing, but in the case of the Mormons, your leader is picked through a process that only allows a member to either vote to follow or GTFO.

Some fairly prominent atheists have taken active roles to confront theists and some have created organizations for specific goals and purposes, mostly political. But nobody to my knowledge has stood up and declared themselves leader nor have we voted one in. Mentors yes, even leaders in the sense of men like Dawkins who have published works or people like Tim Minchin who satirizes religion. But for the most part, I think we all generally realize that we are all intelligent people who have made a rational choice, and leave it at that.

[Jason78]

As an individual Atheist myself

We're all individuals!

[Fidel_Castronaut]

"Atheism" doesn't have leaders; it can't have leaders.

Groups of atheists, on the other hand, can (and do) have leaders. But it's the choice of their own members to be subjected to their leaders. Same with pretty much any other group.

I don't accept any leadership over me from any atheists, though. I'm not a member of any groups.

This 100%

I've never understood the argument that we, as atheists, have to right the wrongs committed by theists and religionists through their attempts to influence structures that in turn influence society (government et al.).

The decline of Christianity in Europe began long before the so called 'new' atheist movements of the past decade. Indeed, the gradual slow decline of religion (Christianity) here has been thanks more to better education and greater freedoms to chose what one believes in without fear or threat of violence if you choose the 'wrong' option. It's a out liberalization, so I would chose to defend this as an egalitarian and a secularist, not an atheist.