Just out of curiosity

[Modem Butterfly]

Has anyone ever known an atheist who was homophobic, racist, or otherwise bigoted?

[Book Lover]

1. I have

A former boyfriend once surprised the shit out of me when he told me an anti-black joke and thought I would laugh. Need I say that relationship ended shortly thereafter?

[Kolesar]

7. My brother used to tell "those kind of jokes"

And I can't get rid of him. Ok, in all fairness he quit telling racist jokes years ago. I did not even have to prod him on it. He just grew up.

[onager]

2. Well, sort of. I've known a few atheists who were...

Republicans. ;-/

Just kidding. I used to hang out quite a bit on the old IRC DALnet Atheist Forums.

I remember a few people who claimed to be atheists, but were also pretty far to the right and used code words ("special rights," "welfare queens," etc.)

[JI7]

3. probably libertarians

[progressoid]

4. Yep

I used to work with an atheist who was made some homophopic statements. At first I thought it was just crude humor, but it was a little too sincere.

He lost his faith during a tour of Vietnam. So I suppose he was also an "atheist in a foxhole".

[trotsky]

5. I personally haven't.

But I also haven't personally met that many atheists (at least in real life), and of those that I have, I haven't had enough conversations with them to deduce that.

[lazarus]

6. I have

They tend to be cranky "libertarians" who forget that libertarian ideals shouldn't just apply to themselves.

[Behind the Aegis]

8. Only here

I have 'met' a few atheist posters who are homophobic because homosexuality is "not natural." Even when it is pointed out that since homosexuality does, in fact, occur in nature, thereby making it "natural," they fall back on the idea of sex for reproduction. :eyes: Doesn't make sense to me.

[FiveGoodMen]

9. Sounds like the people you're talking about

...really still want to believe in Something.

Won't call it God, but still think there's a right and wrong way to do things and an organized purpose behind them.

I'd say that those people only THINK that they're atheists.

[YankeyMCC]

10. Atheists

believe in right and wrong. But maybe you mean a a laundry list of sins which I think is not usually how an atheists determines right and wrong.

Atheists can believe in things, the creativity of humankind, for example. They are just living their lives without a belief in the existence of a god.

BTW: I'm certainly not defending these homophobic "atheists", just didn't want it left that atheists don't believe in things or have a sense of right and wrong.

[FiveGoodMen]

13. Without a God you need

a specific, rational reason to believe that something is right or wrong.

Far as I'm concerned, empathy is the only yardstick to measure by. You treat others the way you'd want to be treated (even you-know-who said that!)

If a person is against something because it's 'unnatural' that means they've elevated nature to god-like status. Otherwise, so what if it's unnatural?

If a person claims that the purpose of sex is reproduction, then who gave it that purpose (yes, I know it SERVES that purpose, but that hardly makes it wrong to have sex without reproduction -- who's going to be offended?)

So yes, atheists and agnostics do believe in good and bad behavior, but these arguments from authority -- it's not natural -- it wasn't MEANT to be -- don't really fit, do they?

[Behind the Aegis]

11. Perhaps they do

But, if they self-identify themselves as atheists, and I see no posts to contradict that, then I will take them at their word...they are atheists. I think there are bigots in every group of people, theists, atheists, gays, straights, blacks, whites, etc. Nobody gets a free pass. :)

[YankeyMCC]

12. yup...it takes all kinds

I guess I wasn't quick enough with my edit to my last post :)

I just didn't want it said atheists don't have a sense of right and wrong.

[Behind the Aegis]

14. I understand

I know atheists, like other groups, have their fair share of assholes. :) The concept that atheists cannot be moral because they don't have "religion," is as stupid as people with "religion" are all intellectually deficient. I know many a moral atheist (at least that is how their posts come across to me!). :)

[FiveGoodMen]

15. Just wondering

is the morality you're seeing in the posts of other atheists based on anything other than empathy?

[Behind the Aegis]

16. I am not sure

I have no idea what their morality is based on or how they came to it. I am also not sure what your question meant. So, if my answer isn't accurate, explain your question again. Thanks.

[FiveGoodMen]

19. In post 13 ...

... I was explaining that I couldn't think of any basis for morality that wasn't based on either empathy or else an authority figure (aka God-of-some-sort).

An earlier post of mine had struck some as though I was stating that atheists don't believe in right and wrong, whereas I was just saying that atheists/agnostics have a different BASIS for judging what's moral.

So, in keeping with that, I was just kind of following up to see whether the atheists-with-a-definite-sense-of-right-and-wrong that you (and others) knew were basing their views on empathy or some other reference point.

[Behind the Aegis]

21. I see where you are coming from now

Thanks for explaining it out. I was so perplexed! :) So, to answer your question, I really don't know what they were basing their "morality" on. I guess it could be empathy, but when I see one who has a real mean streak, empathy seems like a far-reach.

You do bring up an interesting point though. Since many think that morality or right/wrong is based on some sort of religion/spiritual mindset, it would be interesting to see how atheists (I am not one) define the source of their right/wrong decision making. You might pose that question in another thread!

I have always found it interesting that some religious people bad-mouth atheists as not having a "moral center." Yet, these are some of the most immoral people I have ever met!

[Modem Butterfly]

18. Not to question your veracity..

...but I have to wonder whether or not those posters were truly atheists or if they were disruptors in atheist's clothing, so to speak. I say that because this is not unusual in the on-line atheist community and because there are a relatively high number of atheists who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgendered or transsexual (in my experience, I would put the number as high as perhaps 20-25% of atheists as being gay or lesbian or other-gendered). Not that atheists are any less prone to idiocy than any other group mind you, but with such a strong representation among our numbers of LGBTT folks it's more difficult to live in a heterosexual bubble.

[Behind the Aegis]

20. Question away

Like I said, they "claimed" to be atheists and nothing they had posted led me to believe anything other than what they say they are. But, you are correct that some may have been (are) disruptors! I have ferreted out a few on my own. :) The first time I ever encountered a self-proclaimed atheist here, who had an issue with GBLT folks, s/he soon met an untimely end. :evilgrin: But, what surprised me most, was the post count was so high and mine was still relatively low at the time. So, it is like you said (and I did too), every group as some asshats in it (even high posters). I will say that those types are usually not racists or even sexist, but when it comes to gays...oh boy!

For the most part though, most of the atheists I have encountered are interesting and have some good points, even if I don't personally agree with them. Most of them are also easier to have a conversation with than "the other side." ;)

[uberotto]

17. Once knew a guy who was a Redneck, racist, homophobe gun loving...

Neo-Conservative. Hated Clinton, loved Reagan and Bush Sr. Hated religious people, hated blacks, hated jews, hated gays, hated womens liberation.

I once asked him how he knew there was no god, he replied "the fact that N***ers, jews and gays exist is all the proof he needed there was no god."

The good thing about this guy was that no matter how bad things were going in your life... even if on one single day you lost your job, received word that your parents were killed in a horrible accident and found out that your wife had stolen all your money and ran off to Mexico with your brother... after spending ten minutes talking to this guy, you could honestly say to yourself "Hey, things could be worse, I could be like him."

[Taxloss]

22. Oh yeah.

Loads. Being atheist doesn;t cure that kind of behaviour, it just removes a justification for it.