# What's a "New Atheist"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 17, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242 "2011-05-17T20:13:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/21 "2011-05-18T04:16:14Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Or bless them when they sneeze… or use a phrase like “Thank god!” People do this? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/22 "2011-05-18T04:17:49Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > People do this? No. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/23 "2011-05-18T04:18:55Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Old Atheists understand sarcasm. New atheists, unable to recognize a joke, flip out irrationally whenever you mention god. > > Or bless them when they sneeze… or use a phrase like “Thank god!” Some of the funniest people on the web are New Atheists. Now put away your straw and join the discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/24 "2011-05-18T04:20:29Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > There is no such thing as “New Atheism.” … Nonsense! I heard it on the TV. I like the concept that it’s possible to have new evidence that there is no evidence. I think this is a new concept but I have no evidence of it. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/25 "2011-05-18T04:37:29Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > There is no such thing as “New Atheism.” … Not a word in any of those books represents anything “new.” Disagree. There is a perceptible difference in tone between the old and new atheists. Bertrand Russell wrote, “Why I am not a Christian”. Dawkins pens, “The God Delusion”. Calling your adversaries delusional and implicated in terrorist attacks is certainly an advance in heated rhetoric, if not analysis. Even Nietzche was more dismissive than hostile towards theism. Here at the SD, one might call Der Trihs a New Atheist and the currently less active Spiritus Mundi a more traditional one. That said, pretty much no one wants to labelled a new atheist: in practice it’s a backhanded pejorative term. (So I guess apologies are warranted for DT in GQ). ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/26 "2011-05-18T04:49:17Z")
I’d rather be called a new atheist than an old one. I’m getting a little more sensitive about my age. “New” sounds younger. And to the vast majority of Americans, just plain “atheist” is a pejorative, and almost no one would consider any descriptor other than “God damned” or “Commie”. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/27 "2011-05-18T05:05:11Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Some of the funniest people on the web are New Atheists. Now put away your straw and join the discussion. Oh, I’m sorry. I must have missed your contribution to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/28 "2011-05-18T05:11:52Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Some of the funniest people on the web are New Atheists. Who on this board identifies as a “new atheist?” The consensus of this thread is that it’s a bullshit meaningless term. Do you have a cite for this? Not that they arer the funniest, but that they are even “New Atheists??” My comment was directed to Norder who couldn’t seem to recognize a joke. It wasn’t a strawman. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/29 "2011-05-18T05:12:16Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Oh, I’m sorry. I must have missed your contribution to this thread. Fluffer? ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/30 "2011-05-18T05:26:55Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Who on this board identifies as a “new atheist?” The consensus of this thread is that it’s a bullshit meaningless term. Do you have a cite for this? Not that they arer the funniest, but that they are even “New Atheists??” > My comment was directed to Norder who couldn’t seem to recognize a joke. It wasn’t a strawman. I’m a New Atheist. I like the ring of it. Like the religious are afraid of the new, dangerous breed of atheists out there. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/31 "2011-05-18T05:29:49Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > I’m a New Atheist. I like the ring of it. Like the religious are afraid of the new, dangerous breed of atheists out there. If I join can I get an iPad? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/32 "2011-05-18T05:51:30Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Who on this board identifies as a “new atheist?” I’m with **Boyo**. I ain’t admitting to be an “old” anything. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/33 "2011-05-18T05:59:12Z")
I prefer stealth atheist. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/34 "2011-05-18T06:02:45Z")
Ok, that’s three of us. Enough to start a union, I think. What should we demand? I think we should start on equal time on broadcast television. Every time a program mentions god, there should be someone who steps in and say, “God is an unproven theory”. And every time some does a story on some religion doing charity work, there should be another story about the destructive acts of religion through history. Yeah, if you want to “teach the controversy”, this would be a good choice. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/35 "2011-05-18T06:23:50Z")
We need more stipulations. How you do you feel about frilly toothpicks? I’m for 'em! Good, then this club is formed. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/36 "2011-05-18T06:51:03Z")
Glad to see that we’re all getting along. 🙂 Wiki has some other interesting articles. History of atheism: > **[History of atheism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_atheism)** > > Atheism is the rejection of an assertion that a deity exists. In a narrower sense, positive atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities, effectively taking the stance of a positive claim in regards to the existence of any god or goddess. The English term 'atheist' was used at least as early as the sixteenth century and atheistic ideas and their influence have a longer history. > Philosophical atheist thought began to appear in Europe and Asia in the sixth or fifth century BCE.... > [@Wikipedia](#): > > In addition, a large number of accessible antitheist and secularist books, many of which became bestsellers, were published by authors such as Michel Onfray, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, and Christopher Hitchens.[51][52] This gave rise to the New Atheism movement, a label that has been applied, sometimes pejoratively, to outspoken critics of theism.[53] Richard Dawkins also propounds a more visible form of atheist activism which he light-heartedly describes as ‘militant atheism’.[54] Perhaps [antitheism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antitheist) may be a better term for what I was describing above, for those who oppose theism. We can extend the taxonomy. Those who believe in G-d but don’t like Him might be called misotheists. Woody Allen said that he thought G-d wasn’t evil so much as an underachiever: that might be called hypotheism. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/37 "2011-05-18T06:56:21Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > I’m a New Atheist. I like the ring of it. Like the religious are afraid of the new, dangerous breed of atheists out there. “We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him stronger. Faster. Athier.” ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/38 "2011-05-18T07:10:26Z")
> [@mac\_bolan00](#): > > it’s more progressive than that. you have atheism Mk 1 to V, with special/limited editions like saloon, grand tourer, and convertible (the last one i like.) I would have expected the convertible version to be the one _proselitizers_ like. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/39 "2011-05-18T08:20:39Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If I join can I get an iPad? When I joined the Old Atheists all I got was an anti-rapture helmet. I should have waited. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2011, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242/40 "2011-05-18T09:38:37Z")
Is the idea of the “God Hypothesis” new? Dawkins, a New Atheist by the views of many, explicitly claims that the claim of the existence of a deity is a scientific hypothesis, and, as such, can be dealt with using the same methods we deal with astrology and every other hypothesis that makes testable claims. His conclusion, obviously enough, is that there is no evidence in support of any deity that can’t be explained more parsimoniously and more generatively\* by the materialist hypothesis, which is that there is no supernatural and everything can be explained by the laws of nature. \*(‘Generative’ means ‘capable of leading to new insights’. ‘God did it’ is the absolute _least_ generative statement in existence, as it can’t be used to predict anything and is ultimately a dead-end. Good scientific theories are all immensely generative.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-new-atheist/582242.md?page=3)