My parents are creationists (and I was obviously raised as one) and they believe in the whole “god made the earth look older.” It’s just so ridiculous.

Robin asked about the problem with creationists not understanding evolution. I’d say it depends on the person. Most of them seem to not even know what it is in the first place, so it seems that they never were taught it or simply didn’t pay attention (most likely on purpose). For others, they know the material very well, but will play little games and these are the people that use intellectual gymnastics. I’d say cognitive dissonance plays a role for everyone, though. For me, I simply didn’t know anything about it (private school) until I was over 20 and already an atheist. Now, it just seems obvious.

Hipster Christians: Isn’t this just your average Christian? I mean, not necessarily the whole “hipster” thing, but most of them are half assed, claiming to be Christian, while lacking any kind of real moral conviction, especially concerning the sins they enjoy. They water it down because they don’t like the rules and don’t want to look dumb, but it’s not really even Christianity anymore. When I was 22, my girlfriend was one of these people and she went to a church with others like this. On one hand, it bothered me less to be hanging out (as an atheist) with a bunch of Christians who were laid back and weren’t judgmental, but at the same time, it sorta disgusted me that they were such cherry pickers and so half assed about their religion. To me, these people are fakes. If you don’t have the guts to adhere to your religion’s rules, then how can you say you actually believe? They hold onto the religion enough to bring them some comfort, but they don’t follow it enough to show that they actually believe in god. To me, they’re just atheists who WISH god existed.

The Happy Atheist: I’m not a fan of atheists who actually want to ban religion and blame all religion for of the world’s problems, but on the opposite extreme seems to be these “happy atheists.” On one hand, it’s a good idea to show that atheists can be happy and friendly, but it seems like it’s taken to the other extreme, where atheists are discouraged from showing justified anger and aggression towards religion that is hurting people. I rage when I hear about bigots oppressing others or taking advantage of people via their religion. If that makes me an angry atheist, then I wear that badge with pride. I’d say I am a happy atheist who gets angry at the right things, but if I get labeled an angry atheist because I am outraged at atrocities in the name of religion, I’d rather be an angry atheist than an apathetic one.

As a regular contributor to HAF, I can tell you, I’m not required to check my irritation with religion at the door. Whitney runs a good forum there, and though I have my own quibbles with some things there, I wouldn’t have stayed were I required to march in lockstep with a “happy” cadence all the time.