"b" <nospam.bengabenga@caramail.com> wrote in message
news:41913556$0$16886$8fcfb975@news.wanadoo.fr...
> > How is atheism any less based on faith and therefore any less
ridiculous?
>
> feelin' lazy :
>
> http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/ath/blathm_nat_disproof.htm
> Myth:
> You cannot prove that God doesn't exist; therefore, atheism is based on
> faith.

There seems to be a flaw in the logic here: If you can disprove the
existence of specifc deity myths, you can disprove the existence of any
deity. Even if it was possible to disprove the existence of every deity
devised by man using the methods described, it still would not disprove the
existence of any deity.

Further, they claim that atheism is not the disbelief in deity, but the
disbelief in the claim that one exists. There are problems with this.

1. This seems to be a tacit admission of the fact above



2. It doesn't jibe with the normal definition of atheism, hence suggests a
wiggle (using Google define:atheism).

the doctrine or belief that there is no God
www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn


a lack of belief in the existence of God or gods
www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn


The lack of belief in a god and/or the belief that there is no god. The
position held by a person or persons that 'lack belief' in god(s) and/or
deny that god(s) exist.
www.carm.org/atheism/terms.htm


Genus: Position on the existence of God Differentia: The non-belief in God
www.importanceofphilosophy.com/Dictionary.html



3. It blurs the line between atheism and agnosticism (using Google
define:agnosticism)

Genus: Position on the existence of God Differentia: The claim of non-belief
in God and the non-disbelief in God - that the state of Gods existence is
unknowable Comment: This is an example of the evasion of the Law of Excluded
Middle.
www.importanceofphilosophy.com/Dictionary.html


Agnostics already claim a non-belief in god. The only difference between the
agnostic and atheist is that the agnostic has a non-disbelief in god, while
the atheist disbelieves in god.

In general, I would say the dislike of the term "faith" has more to do with
an emotional aversion to the word due to its appropriation by religious
zealots, than with the facts of the matter. We take lots of things on faith
in our daily lives -- we couldn't survive otherwise.

-- 
Regards,
Ryan Ginstrom
ryang@gol.com