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From what I've read of the organized atheist movement, there may well be atheists who are merely acting out emotional issues surrounding their religious upbringing.

But it's so tiresome when a religious person confidently proclaims that all atheists are really just hating God, whom we secretly believe in. Check out the crevo threads here for a taste of the lengths some believers will go to try to read atheists' minds. Did you know that all people who accept evolution are really atheists, and are afraid of God, and by extension afraid of morality?

Did you even know that there are conservative atheists? And did you know that those two words are logically compatible? Can you tell me why that would be?

Perhaps if they just hired good therapists and stopped taking out all their anger one religion, it would look less like hate of one particular god. Once again, when they legally go as aggressively against public, federally paid for, manifestations of other religions, that will blunt the argument that they "hate god". Right now, as it sits at this moment, a good argument exists that they believe in, and hate, the Christian God.

Organized atheists have always struck me as really odd and unpleasant people. I know a ton of atheists (blue state grad school) and most of them are not like Madalyn O'Hair and her ilk. Most of them do not define themselves in terms of their atheism. They don't spend inordinate amounts of time obsessing over God. They don't really care if other people disagree with them. Very live and let live kind of folks. Many seem to have become atheists as part of a very individualistic, follow-my-own-path, kind of worldview. They would find the notion of banding together with others to form a group dedicated to atheism very strange. Probably because such groups like O'Hair's end up a lot like organized religion.

I do know a few atheists who are more vocal about their contempt for religion. Some of them are bitter about past experiences with religion, though in many cases religion is a cover for deeper issues with their families. With others I have no idea what motivates their passion for hating religion. Some of them are more obsessed with God than religious people are. They aren't happy people and they aren't normal people either. They usually have many other problems and dysfunctions in their lives. Rather sad bunch really - but not typical of atheists in my experience.

Did you even know that there are conservative atheists?

I've yet to see anything conservative about most of them. Conservative don't ally themselves with the ACLU to over rule local control and duly elected representatives. Most of them here stay on the darwin threads and kvetch about the "theocracy" - when they aren't referring to Christians as the Taliban. (anyone who thinks we are approaching a theocracy in the US really needs his/her head examined)