To me, I don't think religious people or religion in general coined the term "atheist". Most religions already had words for those outside of that sect or of a completely different religion. Heathen and infidel come to me first off.

Also, a line from a movie comes to mind. "Mother is the name for God on the lips of all children"

Life is very much a series of god figures that provide life.

I don't mind the word atheist because it tells you almost NOTHING about me. You could make assumptions but really it just means absence of belief in god. On the other hand if I say i am christian, humanist, stoic, nihilist or my personal favourite 'absurdist' you can make all sorts of assumptions.

but then I'm not from usa. you're experience i think is different.

Some of us resist the indoctrination and keep our minds clear.

If that were true people wouldn't develop new superstitions over time.
If that were true you would have found at least one culture without supernatural explanations of natural events.
If that were true most people would already be atheists.

Who ever wrote the meme hasn't spent enough time around children from different cultures. They're very creative and inventive without any indoctrination required.

We are born a blank slate and our natural curiosity dictates that we search for answers. The religious understand that the young can have that need allied with a need for security welded together into a mindset imprinted very early. This both locks them in and builds an easily controlled human guidance system which is almost impossible to address. Atheists are vulnerable to having a ''Label'' or identefiable brand imposed upon them and so become more easily herded together for the purpose of selective targeting. We need something that implies compassionate reasoned logic and freedom of intellect in the form of an identity. Perhaps something attached to the word atheist would help.

It’s just a bald faced declaration with no supporting argument.

I lean toward thinking that everyone is born religious but that many churches screw that up by using guilt and fear to impose false doctrines.

I disagree, though it pains me to say so. It seems to an extent that we are hard wired for belief, and to reject this requires an act of will. Therefore, I think that labelling this rejection atheism seems wholly appropriate.

I feel sure that humans are neither born atheists nor theists, because you have to have the concept of God before you can believe s/he does or does not exist. It is like babies are neither born believing that Santa Claus does or does not exist because they don't come with an idea of Santa Claus.

Every time I view updated statistics ..we’re gaining in numbers. It seems though, until we’re the majority, the majority ‘mindset’ sets the standards and definitions.

Some day we may expect them to describe themselves as religious, or theist, as we’d simply describe ourselves as normal

I agree, as we're all born blank slates , so to speak. One must be taught the ways of whatever religion, be taught who to hate, be taught basic values and skills - or not. We are products of our home and neighborhood environments. It is only those that dare to question, to challenge, to choose their own paths in life, that may end up far away from their original direction - searching, and often flourish because of it !

Absolutely true. Easily proven: For those that think you're born believing in a god, which god? Are you also born knowing calculus? Is there a capitalism gene? As for the descriptive term it is merely that. White is the absence of color--should it not have a name because it is the absence of color? Saying there should be no term atheist is like saying there should be no term for white or clear.

I like a comparison I read saying there's no formal word for those without a belief in leprechauns. An "aleprechaunist" as it were.

I also like that others have pointed out the subtle but important distinctions between non-belief, unbelief, and disbelief.

Agree. Why should I attach a label to myself based upon someone else’s belief. If we are going to do that than shouldn’t we be consistent and, for example, have a label in regards to people who believe in Leprechauns? I don’t feel like a label should be applied to a person simply for requiring evidence. The term atheist sounds too much like it has religious connotations. I just consider myself non-religious. Using the term non-religious instead of atheist may also assist the understanding of the logically-illiterate people who think atheists have a burden of proof.

I disagree because I believe mom is the word for god for every child who has a mother.

True. We are born not believing in god(s). Only until it is forced upon a child, which is not fair to that child.

I disagree. It seems to me Atheists exist as a reaction to the abuses of religion. From the amount of time Atheists on this site speak of their hatred for God and religion would Atheism exist without organized religion? Not as a movement I think. In fact I think based on History humans yearn for meaning through spiritual paths. With or without organized religion. And while religion is declining spirituality is not. Which is a good thing and is as it should be. People should have the freedom to believe or not but not the right to define or apply policy affecting others based on non provable dogma of any kind. Whether its religion or GOOP.
[vox.com]

if that were true, where did religion come from.

With the time all humans reaches to childhood to boyhood and so on. Not only that intelligence , judgement power, experience, memory also grow. But in general stupdity also grows to become a believer. Which is slowly decreasing day by day and believers are decreasing and non-believers are increasing. Thanks to anti god

I agree.

The opinion for last line is some backward concepts are still forth runner. So the term backward is useless here.

For the first part of the post.....to identify the state of mind of a child, as having no belief in a supreme being....that works for me.....for the second part....the statement seems very presumptive.

I disagree.

I can't really comment on this succinctly, but the theistic concept of reality really is ironic.

Yep. As imaginations matured throughout human history they eventually began inventing gods to explain the mysteries they couldn't. And those people passed those inventions down to their children. But then science came along and is trying to correct a multi-millennium long course. Obviously not an easy task.