Atheists identified as America’s most distrusted minority, according to new U of M study

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (3/20/2006) -- American’s increasing acceptance of religious diversity doesn’t extend to those who don’t believe in a god, according to a national survey by researchers in the University of Minnesota’s department of sociology.

From a telephone sampling of more than 2,000 households, university researchers found that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in “sharing their vision of American society.” Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry.

Even though atheists are few in number, not formally organized and relatively hard to publicly identify, they are seen as a threat to the American way of life by a large portion of the American public. “Atheists, who account for about 3 percent of the U.S. population, offer a glaring exception to the rule of increasing social tolerance over the last 30 years,” says Penny Edgell, associate sociology professor and the study’s lead researcher.

Edgell also argues that today’s atheists play the role that Catholics, Jews and communists have played in the past—they offer a symbolic moral boundary to membership in American society. “It seems most Americans believe that diversity is fine, as long as every one shares a common ‘core’ of values that make them trustworthy—and in America, that ‘core’ has historically been religious,” says Edgell. Many of the study’s respondents associated atheism with an array of moral indiscretions ranging from criminal behavior to rampant materialism and cultural elitism.

Edgell believes a fear of moral decline and resulting social disorder is behind the findings. “Americans believe they share more than rules and procedures with their fellow citizens—they share an understanding of right and wrong,” she said. “Our findings seem to rest on a view of atheists as self-interested individuals who are not concerned with the common good.”

The researchers also found acceptance or rejection of atheists is related not only to personal religiosity, but also to one’s exposure to diversity, education and political orientation—with more educated, East and West Coast Americans more accepting of atheists than their Midwestern counterparts.

The study is co-authored by assistant professor Joseph Gerteis and associate professor Doug Hartmann. It’s the first in a series of national studies conducted the American Mosaic Project, a three-year project funded by the Minneapolis-based David Edelstein Family Foundation that looks at race, religion and cultural diversity in the contemporary United States. The study will appear in the April issue of the American Sociological Review.

Read the original text here. (http://www.ur.umn.edu/FMPro?-db=releases&-lay=web&-format=umnnewsreleases/releasesdetail.html&ID=2816&-Find)

Here is a follow-up article:

Atheists: fastest growing minority?
The overwhelming majority of U.S. citizens profess some religious faith, although far fewer attend worship services on a regular basis. The public square has become increasingly dominated by religious (specifically, Christian) rhetoric, from the "values voters" of the 2004 presidential election to hot-button cultural issues that carry a religious edge -- abortion, gay rights, stem-cell research, intelligent design, the right to die.

And yet at the same time a compelling undercurrent is at work. A study done by the Graduate Center of the City University of New York found that the percentage of the population that describes itself as "nonreligious" more than doubled from 1990 to 2001, from 14.3 million to 29.4 million people. The only other group to show growth was Muslims.

"Right now, the fastest-growing religious identity in America is the nonreligious," says Dan Barker, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), a Madison, Wis.-based group that champions church-state separation and works to educate the public on nontheism.

A study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that 16 percent of Americans (about 35 million) consider themselves "unaffiliated" -- a category that includes "unaffiliated believers," "secularists" and atheists/agnostics.

The latter terms -- atheists and agnostics -- are lumped together, says Green, because they share so many similarities. But there is a subtle difference: Atheists forthrightly affirm that there is no God; agnostics simply say as humans we can never know. Together, they constitute about 3 percent of the American population.

Original text found here. (http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/living/religion/14121950.htm)

Thus lending credence to my unshakable belief that people are generally stupid, closed-minded bigots. I pose no more threat to America than a fucking toothbrush.

I've always felt as if Christians were willing to tolerate any other religion with some measure of acceptance. Tell them you are an atheist, however, and walls spring up, accusations are leveled, and people think you're some kind of monster.

Thus lending credence to my unshakable belief that people are generally stupid, closed-minded bigots. I pose no more threat to America than a fucking toothbrush.

:eyes toothbrush suspiciously:

I am absolutely disgusted by this:

to publicly identify

A split infinitive in a university publication indeed.

:eyes toothbrush suspiciously:
Have something to say, Mr. Scorpio?

Have something to say, Mr. Scorpio?

My twisted twin obsessions are my plot to rule the world and my employees' health.

So much fer permanent prayin' damage!



I kinda EXPECT buy bull types ta have BIG mouths, but it's gittin' mighty hippo critical lately....



www. have ya checked out the latest Jimmy Swaggert sinner-fold of Pray Boy magazine yet? .edu

"I've never had trouble with the MUSLIMS, but I'll be g'DAMNED if I ever let anuther CHRISTIAN aboard one of my ships!"--William Bligh



www. uh, i mightta imagined the quote above, but i think he WOULDA said it .edu

Because of course I'm plotting to eat your babies and take your women.

Thus lending credence to my unshakable belief that people are generally stupid, closed-minded bigots. I pose no more threat to America than a fucking toothbrush.
Agreed. What the fuck is the difference what religion you are and if you even believe in something. You're a fucking person with the will to do anything.

I believe there was a thread where someone made a statement to the nature that Islam is a terrorist religion...and then someone got in there and said it's all bullshit. I don't see what the big fucking difference is if you believe in God or not.

W.A.S.P.s are the curse of the western world,and should b hunted down at every oppertunity,just look at good old George,and the shit hes in.

This is just CHRISTIANS trying to say that athiests are bad people.....

Who the fuck are they??

Athiests/Agnostics are no more bad than anyone else...(Christians just dont like anything that isnt "Christian" i think)

Hello DUDE.Being Irish and of Catholic decent my country has a bad history of these extreme right wingers.Their more to blame for the mess the worlds in than anybody else ie right wing extremeists around the globe have been shitting on people in the name of God for centuries.

W.A.S.P.s are the curse of the western world,and should b hunted down at every oppertunity,just look at good old George,and the shit hes in.

What'd I ever do to you?

If "christians" call you a "monster" for being an athiest.. well then they are wrong. If you see a christian spewing hate, ridiculing, or any of that... he/she is not representing the religion at all...

christianity is a tolerent religion.. as is Islam.

christianity is a tolerent religion.. as is Islam.

Admit it, you only said Islam because you knew I'd call you out on it if you didn't. You don't really believe that.

You don't really believe that.

Whatever happened to the "take things at face value" philosophy? :D

christianity is a tolerent religion.. as is Islam.Im sorry, but i see no tolerance in islam at all. It is a racist, hateful religion, IMO.


Back to thread topic. If you, as an atheist, have no belief structure, why is it so hard to take that other people have no belief in you?

Well, now, another one!

HaVoK, there is a little thread right now that is currently inactive, called Israelie Apartheid. The current holder of the position of "Israel is a hateful, racist, violent religion," seems to have lost the fight in him. In it I defend the position that Islam is really a religion of tolerance and peace. Drew balked at taking his place, and later reversed his position. Would you care to pick up the fight once more and justify intolerance of Islam?

Whatever happened to the "take things at face value" philosophy?

Maybe one day I'll pick that one up, dust it off and wear it again. But I think I want a little intrigue, a little scandal now :D

Well, now, another one!

HaVoK, there is a little thread right now that is currently inactive, called Israelie Apartheid. The current holder of the position of "Israel is a hateful, racist, violent religion," seems to have lost the fight in him. In it I defend the position that Islam is really a religion of tolerance and peace. Drew balked at taking his place, and later reversed his position. Would you care to pick up the fight once more and justify intolerance of Islam?I will ammend my statement by saying that I am not an expert on the subject on islam, the religion. I do,however, know quite a few muslims. Both the american black variety and the middle eastern as well. None of them are taught tolerance of other beliefs or people through their religion. All you have to do is talk to them for more than a few minutes to find this out.

For other examples, look to your tv set every day for examples of islam's "tolerance". When homocide bombers blow up innocent jewish women and children, where do you see muslim holy men denouncing the actions? Maybe there are a few, but the vast majority either say nothing, or proclaim the bombers to be martyrs.

Thats where i form my opinions from. Hope i explained it well enough.

That's all well and good, but you really can't practice tolerance unless your demographic is the one in the position to do any tolerating. Islam is currently not in that position. It is fighting against a much stronger, bigger, and aggressive adversary. Islam was the first large, monotheistic faith in the world to practice religious tolerance, Christianity didn't catch up until the Enlightenment.

That's all well and good, but you really can't practice tolerance unless your demographic is the one in the position to do any tolerating. Islam is currently not in that position. It is fighting against a much stronger, bigger, and aggressive adversary. Islam was the first large, monotheistic faith in the world to practice religious tolerance, Christianity didn't catch up until the Enlightenment.I disagree. You dont let outside influence define your faith. Either you are tolerant, or you're not. Someone strapping a bomb to their chest and blowing up a busload of women and children is not tolerant.

Someone abducting a civil worker, newspaperman, or any other innocent and beheading them is not tolerant. People who sit on their asses while others of their faith perform atrocities in the name of their faith are just as bad as the ones who did it. Silence is just another form of acceptance. On that note, if you would like to discuss this further, lets do so in our own thread or PM me. Sorry everyone for the threadjack.

Back to your regularly scheduled posting. :)

How about we continue this in the thread that already exists? I will rebut there.

Ok well back to the subject

Holy shit! I want to smack the author of that first article. Thats just hateful religious slander that is trying to be disguised as science. Im writing that jackass a letter.

Im sorry, but i see no tolerance in islam at all. It is a racist, hateful religion, IMO.

Agreed


Back to thread topic. If you, as an atheist, have no belief structure, why is it so hard to take that other people have no belief in you?

Atheist can be believed in, after all we can see, hear, touch, and smell them. :drinktoth I have yet to meet a complete atheist, are there any? Most folks I have met call themselfs atheist because they have left Christianity. Then they go on to say they could or may believe in something, I think this would make them agnostic?

Agnostic: ag·nos·tic (g-nstk) KEY

NOUN:
One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God.
One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.
One who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.
*****
Prolly so, mad dog

Thus lending credence to my unshakable belief that people are generally stupid, closed-minded bigots. I pose no more threat to America than a fucking toothbrush.

you got that right

Agnostic: ag·nos·tic (g-nstk) KEY

NOUN:
One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God.
One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.
One who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.
*****
Prolly so, mad dog

So with that def. is there anyone here that is 100% atheist?

So with that def. is there anyone here that is 100% atheist?

You mean agnostic?

So with that def. is there anyone here that is 100% atheist?
=====================

Is there anyone here that is 100% sane?
No, not me.

I would be terrified to be atheist.
why take chances? lol........
It costs little to believe.

I would be terrified to be atheist.
why take chances? lol........
It costs little to believe.
Pascal's Wager? Come now, rendova, don't you realize that hedging one's bets that way is absolutely selfish and removes all value from religion? It's also not really not possible to change my beliefs in that fashion, I'm sorry.

I see yr point, Borg, but speaking personally, I've never been scared into believing.
I find it personally terrifying to think that, when you die, there is nothing.

I refuse to believe that!

It costs little to believe.

It costs a great deal to believe in something against your being for a promise nobody can fulfill. If your belief is of the sort that it makes you do great things you wouldn't have otherwise, then you have made a good trade. If your belief is of the whiny, kiddie stuff of worry about death, then your's will be a whiny, sissy faith. Live life honestly, truthfully, and powerfully and God will recognize you when you die and exalt you whether you had believed in Him or not. If you sit there worrying about currying God's favor, wondering if you've done enough to get into Heaven, or if you only believe enough to get you there, you really missed the whole point of religion in the first place, and you'll be lucky if St. Peter even says your name properly as he waves you through the gate.

It is terrifying and depressing for me to think that a good person, who lived a good life, no matter their faith, or lack therof, should not somehow be rewarded or to go on.
A truly depressing and frightening thought.

So your belief is borne out of fear. Do you have the intellectual honesty to admit that to yourself? That the only reason you believe in God, deep down in your heart, is because you are afraid of death, and that all the other reasons are mere window dressing?

Not of fear, but rather a desire for immortality. A natural human desire.
And to see my Dad again.

PS Saw this on Johnny Carson once--
"Be nice to God. He can kill you like that." ** snaps fingers*

On THAT happy note.......

Agnostic: ag·nos·tic (g-nstk) KEY

NOUN:
One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God.
One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.
One who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.
*****
Prolly so, mad dog
The definition I have highlighted in bold demonstrates why agnosticism is not the open-minded belief that many think. Indeed, it is a dogmatic and absolutist position.

Theists claim to know god yet the agnostic replies this is impossible! In other words agnosticism is a positive assertion that Christians, and all theists, are deluded or liars. Furthermore the agnostic categorically asserts that heaven does not exist - after all, heaven is an afterlife in which God is intimately known.

Atheism is far more reasonable as it is merely a personal admission that I am unconvinced by claims for gods, not a positive ontological assertion that gods do not exist or that gods are unknowable.

An honest answer, blob.

PS Also, to address a previous point, how many of us want to die?
I mean, are actually looking forward to it?
Please raise your hand.....!!

To be perfectly honest, I don't care whether I am alive or dead. Aside from the instinctual biological desire to preserve my own life, nothing more exists. I don't see my life as having purpose or as important to anything other than myself.

I'm terrified of death and of dying. The former because I love being alive and the latter because I'm scared it will be painful.

Me too---if we all could go out peacefully, like just slipping into sleep, it wouldn't be so bad--with our friends and family beside us to bid us adieu and sob as they contemplate a sorry life without our gracious presence...but, lol, it ain't always that way....

I believe that many believe in some sort of religion out of fear as to what will happen if they don't believe.

This is wrong. I believe that God, whoever he is, is a kindly God. But maybe I'm wrong, quien sabe?

I don't think any of us knows a dang thing about God, IMO.

"I'm not afraid of death. I just don't want to be there when it happens."

- Woody Allen

I will be great in life, or I will die trying.

I'm terrified of death and of dying. The former because I love being alive and the latter because I'm scared it will be painful.

Death won't be painfull the act of getting dead will be :). Once we are dead will our life mean anything to those who are still alive?{say 100 years from now}. Sure we have famous figure heads from the past but do we rally need there statues to keep us alive?

Death won't be painfull the act of getting dead will be :).Yes, it's the pain of dying and the nonexistence of being dead that I find terrifying.

AAARRRGGGHHHH! We're all going to DIE!!! ;)

Once we are dead will our life mean anything to those who are still alive?{say 100 years from now}.
Unless society crumbles my name will be in dusty academic journals in university library basements for a good while.

Cold comfort.

Do we really die if there is an after life????????

Do we really die if there is an after life????????
I find the notion of 'afterlife' so half-baked as to be highly unlikely. You'd have to ask those who believe such things.

100 years from now,theyll be digging us up to build new shpooing centres. A million years from now,fish will be making tv shows about these strange bones theyve found.

A million years from now,fish will be making tv shows about these strange bones theyve found.And some fish will strongly object to any inferences drawn, on the grounds that in the beginning a big invisible fish made everything...

Remember the song? fish heads fish heads rolly polly fish heads eat them up yum.

Im glad to say I dont know that one.