Atheism is not a religious affiliation; it’s a lack thereof. I’m of the particular belief that religion is a crutch for the mbumes, as well as a dangerous tool in the hands of a select few. People will subscribe to whatever ridiculous bull**** you throw at them, which is why the more obviously false religions, like Scientology, are still successful. The only real difference between the more radical religious organizations (Creationists, anyone?) and the moderate ones is that the radical religious zealots are too deluded to be concerned about whether they’re actually right or not, so criticism doesn’t work on them. Moderately religious people have nothing but the argument that “You can’t prove me wrong”, and tend to become irritable when asked if they’ve really considered their faith in a light of reason.

My parents and my sister are all guilty of this; I point out some glaring contradictions in their precious Holy Book, and they invariably respond with, “I don’t want to talk about this.” Religion was once something they pestered me about, mocking me for “close-mindedness”. Now nobody in my family mentions religion to me, because they know they aren’t equipped to argue with me on any factual grounds.

Even if there turned out to be a deity of some sort, I would still consider religion a sham. All it does is perpetuate close-mindedness and a broken system of moral absolutes. If there were a god, I should hope it would expect people to think rationally. Any supreme being that advocates blind faith over logical deduction and the careful consideration of empirical evidence cannot possibly offer me a heaven I would deem worth entering.

That said, I have no religious affiliation. Anybody responding that their religious affiliation is “atheistic” should probably look up the term.