Why aren't atheists agnostic?

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For me, it's very simple. Do I believe in God? No, I do not. That makes me an atheist.

My belief is that it is impossible to know except after death, and even then how do we know that some experience after death will even be anything like what is described in one book or another (how many people have truly died and lived to tell about it). Even if some such being were to appear before me and perform some mind boggling miracle, it would be impossible to trust even my own senses. How would I know that it wasn't just some far more advanced alien life form that had evolved abilities and a form that to me or other humans seem god-like, but is neither eternal or the creator of the universe, just a realy powerful liar? How would an ant percieve me?

Even if I were to except events in any religous book as a fact, that still wouldn't mean that the perpetrators of those events were not in fact something like described above and not devine in nature. If I were to continue accepting that these events happened, it still does not even mean that they happened as described, or even at all. Powerful people will do anything to remain powerful, and that includes altering, and omiting texts from "sacred" manuscripts. For example some books of the bible were accepted, some were not, humans decided which ones. Believers may say that the people resonsible for that decision were guided by God or maybe the Devil. Well ok, but what else would it take for such a person to be able to change texts? What if they weren't true believers either and just wanted power? What if the original writers were the same way? Human nature is well documented, outside of a few ancient scrolls the nature of God is not.

Humans collectively know very little, a minute fraction of the true nature of the universe. We don't even fully understand how our own planet works. The things we "know" may turn out to eventualy be all wrong. We can vaccinate, but we cannot cure viruses.

I cannot and will not take a stance of absolution about anything in regards to Gods, or the Universe, or Life and Death. So no, I do not belive in the God of the bible, or any book. Does that mean that a being powerful enough to have created the universe doesn't exist? I don't know. If such a being exists did it contact us ants, and lay down rules and comandments so it can chariot us away to paradise after death if we follow them? I am willing to bet my soul that It did not. Could I be mistaken? Ask me again when I'm dead.

But that's just my oppinion.

Yeah, one can only know after death, but I always make myself this question, if I kill a cockroach, what happens after its death? is it over or it goes beyond our dimension or something like that?

And I also have this question:
Why animals don't believe or worship any God? Why only humans have to do that?

Well he is feared by all lizards, birds, rabits, and squirrels in about a two mile radius. They dare not speaketh his name.

Well I think the burden of proof is on the theists to prove that a god exists, and if they can't prove it, I'm justified in believing that it doesn't.

Also the Judeo-Christian God is logically impossible.

I can't disprove an impersonal "deist" god, so technically I'm agnostic about that, but I don't believe it exists so I'm an agnostic atheist, which is possible.

Agnosticism deals with knowing, a/theism deals with believing. It's possible to not think we can know for sure, but have the opinion that it doesn't exist. Which is my opinion with respect to deism.

I don't believe in God for the same reason I don't believe in Santa Claus or in leprechauns: no one has been able to provide me with any compelling reason to.

People who are like me, but believe that agnosticism means realizing that one can't know whether there is or isn't a god, and that atheism means knowing there isn't a god, consider themselves agnostic.

People who are like me, and believe that agnosticism means not believing one way or the other, and that atheism means believing there is no god / not believing in god (same thing), consider themselves atheist.

I consider myself an atheist.

My definitions are as follows:

- A Christian is someone who either claims to know that the Christian god is real, or believes in the Christian god.

- An atheist believes in no god.

- An agnostic is someone who doesn't believe one way or another about whether there is a god.
They may or may not also realize the fact that whether or not God exists is unknowable, and I believe this sentence applies to all other labels as well.

There are Christians who believe, but realize that they can't know, just as their are ones who believe and claim to know. Same for atheists (except 'not believe' instead of 'believe').


I used to be one of the ones who said "Agnosticism is the only logical choice for anyone, period." But when I realized there are people from all different belief or lack of belief systems who either do or do not realize the fact that Gods are unprovable/unknowable, and realized that these labels are instead a label of what you do or do not believe, it became clear that atheist is the appropriate label for me, and for anyone who doesn't lean towards believing in God.