Are you a pearlist?

[basic_atheist]

Well, that's not always the case. If it's purely a social relationship, then what you say is valid, but that changes if the person has any power over you. If the person is your boss, it can affect your employment and promotion opportunities. Similar situations exist for police, judges, elected representatives, teachers, etc.

Yeah, it's a different story when you're talking about those types of people. One thing I find to be most effective is to only speak to them when they ask a question. I refuse to answer any religious questions unless I know for sure they would be okay with my answer. If I don't know the person, then he/she will not know me. In fact, I'm more open with my views on the internet than I am in person.

Speaking of the boss, when I was hired for my current job, the president of the company asked me what church I went to. This immediately threw up a red flag on the situation. I knew if I said I didn't go to church, then he would try to promote the church he goes to, so I didn't want to go that route. I knew if I said I wasn't religious, then he would try to question my morality and second guess my ability to perform in a trustworthy manner. I was practically begging for a job at the time, so I had to pull a slick move. I thought of the very last church I've actually been to in the past and gave him that name. He then says, "Oh yeah. That's a nice small church. I've been there once. Has the size changed any?" - [I KNEW IT! He only goes for bigger churches!] - I reply with, "Nope, it's still as small as ever." - LOL... and so I got the job. Hey, I didn't lie. I really went to that church... ONCE... to help them move some furniture.

 

[candre23]

I've always thought it strange that there even needs to be a word for "atheists". You don't have special words for people who don't believe in unicorns or sasquatch, so why would you need one for people who don't believe in this one particular mythological creature? When people ask me what I am, I usually just say "Not gullible".

 

[basic_atheist]

I've always thought it strange that there even needs to be a word for "atheists". You don't have special words for people who don't believe in unicorns or sasquatch, so why would you need one for people who don't believe in this one particular mythological creature? When people ask me what I am, I usually just say "Not gullible".

Ha Ha Ha... I like that. Good one.

I don't believe in unicorns or sasquatch either. I guess that makes me a... ummm... Aunicornist and Asasquatchist ???

To sum it all up, how about... Antimythological ?

 

[boondongle]

I've always thought it strange that there even needs to be a word for "atheists". You don't have special words for people who don't believe in unicorns or sasquatch, so why would you need one for people who don't believe in this one particular mythological creature? When people ask me what I am, I usually just say "Not gullible".

A majority of the world's population don't believe in unicorns or sasquatch, and people who believe in them don't make military, economic, and political decisions based on what they think the unicorns or sasquatch want us to do.

So basically, we have a term for atheism simply because the issue is more important than whether you believe in unicorns or sasquatch or any other bunk.

 

[Rosa]

I really prefer the term "atheist" personally. It's not my problem if people can't handle it. And fortunately I've never lived somewhere where there were a lot of bible thumpers so it doesn't come up a lot. If my employer ever asked me I'd probably just say that I choose not to discuss it. And I'm gobstopped that someone would actually ask about it during a job interview since it's absolutely illegal in the U.S. to even bring it up at all (and is protected by the constitution) so I suppose if they brought it up and you didn't get the job for any reason you could sue them and be compensated for all the money you probably would have made had you been employed there. hmmmm.....

 

[basic_atheist]

I really prefer the term "atheist" personally. It's not my problem if people can't handle it. And fortunately I've never lived somewhere where there were a lot of bible thumpers so it doesn't come up a lot. If my employer ever asked me I'd probably just say that I choose not to discuss it. And I'm gobstopped that someone would actually ask about it during a job interview since it's absolutely illegal in the U.S. to even bring it up at all (and is protected by the constitution) so I suppose if they brought it up and you didn't get the job for any reason you could sue them and be compensated for all the money you probably would have made had you been employed there. hmmmm.....

Yeah, probably.

But, I'm not that type of person. I'd rather just find a way to avoid the issue and work around it. Like I said, I needed a job... and FAST!

 

[boondongle]

If my employer ever asked me I'd probably just say that I choose not to discuss it. And I'm gobstopped that someone would actually ask about it during a job interview since it's absolutely illegal in the U.S. to even bring it up at all (and is protected by the constitution) so I suppose if they brought it up and you didn't get the job for any reason you could sue them and be compensated for all the money you probably would have made had you been employed there. hmmmm.....

Some employers can discriminate based on religion. Things like religious organizations and non-profits can hire based on religious beliefs. Also, I think (not sure) that a Christian bookstore could, for example, hire only Christians. I seem to remember that very small businesses were also exempt in some ways, though I don't recall the details. And an employer can always have an explicitly religious mission statement or code of conduct and ask you if you can uphold it, or something like that. If you're interested in the details, you should do some research, because I'm fairly sure there's not a universal ban on hiring based on religion.

 

[basic_atheist]

Some employers can discriminate based on religion. Things like religious organizations and non-profits can hire based on religious beliefs. Also, I think (not sure) that a Christian bookstore could, for example, hire only Christians. I seem to remember that very small businesses were also exempt in some ways, though I don't recall the details. And an employer can always have an explicitly religious mission statement or code of conduct and ask you if you can uphold it, or something like that. If you're interested in the details, you should do some research, because I'm fairly sure there's not a universal ban on hiring based on religion.

Initially you do go by this...

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral, and other aspects of employment, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. This law is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

But Boondongle is correct when you read one extra requirement to be covered legally. Which is...

General Coverage:
If a complaint against a business (or some other private employer) involves race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information, the business is covered by the laws we enforce if it has 15 or more employees who worked for the employer for at least twenty calendar weeks (in this year or last).

So yes, a small business could tell an applicant to go to hell and find a job somewhere else based on religious beliefs, or lack thereof.

That is sad... Really, Really Sad.

 

[jennlsnoopy]

So then I'm thinking...do people confuse Atheism with satanism? What's the deal? I'm not a bad person....

Yep. I think that people see Atheism as an "evil religion" or something. It's almost like if you don't believe in god then you are evil.

 

[candre23]

Pretty much all religions are terrified of atheists. For them, not believing in any god is much worse than believing in the "wrong" god. For theists of all varieties, there's sort of a camaraderie of absurdity that they share with each other. A kind of social contract that says "I won't point out the patently ridiculous aspects of your belief system if you don't point out mine. We'll agree to disagree on abstractions only and not bring any facts into the debate, because we'll both lose on that front."

There's also that tiny, nagging bit in every believer's brain that knows that what they believe is silly. They hate facing that bit, so they prefer to surround themselves with other silly-minded people. The specifics of their silliness is not important. It is simply comforting for them to be around others who have consciously abandoned logic and reason for superstition and folklore. If everybody is crazy, then it's not crazy - it's normal.

But if some people aren't crazy, then the illusion of sanity vanishes. Atheists are like the smart kid in school who always wrecked the grading curve. Logically, you can't blame the kid for being smart, but the dumb kids always hated him for making them look that much dumber.

 

[SuperTrooper]

Candre23- I love your analogy of Athiests being the smart kid in class that ruins the grading curve. Very true, and it made me smile.

 

[woolfe99]

I don't feel the need to invent other words to describe a lack of belief in God. Theist is a perfectly serviceable word to describe belief in God, and all a-theism is is a lack of that belief. The fact that it is kind of a pejorative is everyone else's problem, not ours.

- wolf

 

[jennlsnoopy]

I think a lot more people understand what atheism means now than they did in the past. There are still some people that don't understand that just because a person doesn't believe in a god or any "supernatural power" that they can still be a moral or good person. Morality for most does not require religion.