Being an atheist has nothing do with with politics or moral standing.
Perhaps you should reevaluate the difference between KNOWLEDGE and WISDOM.
The dumbest man on the face of the Earth is still WISER if he walks with GOD as his guide than Hawking, Buffett, Carmack, Vonnegut, or any other high-brow!
As far as dictionary goes, "idiot" is the opposite of "intelligent," which these people are. As far as Wisdom goes, the Dalai Lama is one of the wisest people on the planet, but he doesn't talk with your god. Michael Moore is a practicing Catholic, likely talking to his god all the time, but that didn't make him very wise.
To which GOD, out of the thousands worshipped throughout human history, do you refer and why should I believe your claim of GOD over the thousands of other varying claims made throughout human history?