Go Ahead and Embrace the Word Atheist (Even If You Prefer a Different Label) [View all]
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/07/30/go-ahead-and-embrace-the-word-atheist-even-if-you-prefer-a-different-label/
Go Ahead and Embrace the Word Atheist (Even If You Prefer a Different Label)
July 30, 2017 by Hemant Mehta
Should you use the word atheist to describe yourself even if Humanist describes you more thoroughly or Agnostic seems more philosophically honest?
David Silverman, President of American Atheists, (obviously) says yes. But its not just for self-serving reasons.
YouTuber Alex J. OConnor (a.k.a. CosmicSkeptic) recently met Silverman and describes the conversation they had on this very topic. He also talks about how Silverman managed to convince him that the atheist label should be embraced even if people who fit the description would rather use another term.
There are no doubt atheists who believe the word carries too much stigma or who feel we shouldnt have to use the word at all (since its not like we have a-unicornists). This video rebuts those points and more.
I love the point at the end: Call yourself an atheist today, so you wont have to tomorrow.
For my part, I prefer
Realist as opposed to
Atheist, primarily due to the word Atheist being dependent on existence of the theist point of view, the ambiguity of just which deity(ies) is/are being discounted (everyone is an Atheist, since no-one believes in all the gods, past present or future) and the negative connotation and subtext as derived from the "
A" theism.
However, I agree that from an umbrella marketing/popularization point of view, the word has value when embraced.
Oh, and another reason I don't like the word Atheism...that whole
i before
e /
e before
i difficulty (you know, spelling).