I am an Atheist. I live in the Bible Belt. I also happen to live in the vicinity of a few other “atheists”, and as such I would like to make some things VERY clear:

A) I do not hate you or your religion. While you and I may disagree about what religion is and how the world was made, I do NOT HATE ANYONE FOR THEIR RELIGIOUS CHOICES. As such, I AM NOT GOING TO HURT YOU FOR BEING RELIGIOUS. There are actually people on my campus telling people that Atheists hate Christians and want to hurt religious people and that is not true.

B) I do not think you’re stupid. You and I may disagree on creation and some other topics, but I DO NOT THINK YOU ARE LESS INTELLIGENT FOR HAVING RELIGION. In fact, I applaud your faith. I personally can’t put faith in something I can’t understand or see, so you are far more capable than I in that respect.

C) People who claim to be Atheists, this one’s for you: Atheism does not mean cynicism. Just because you disagree with someone does not mean you have to be rude about it. Let me make this clear: IF YOU HATE RELIGION AND HARASS ITS FOLLOWERS, YOU ARE NOT AN ATHEIST, YOU ARE AN ANTI-THEIST AND A BIT OF AN ASSHOLE. Atheism=no religion, Anti-Theism=against religion. Stop calling yourselves Atheists; you’re making me look bad.

Let’s all try to understand each other a little better before we listen to people in the media or even on the street about other people’s beliefs.