On the Rise of Outspoken Atheists

Nation Magazine has posted a story about "The New Atheists" that notes the rising popularity of books by outspoken atheists. Here's a quote:

These believers, along with those who think of themselves as "spiritual," as well as professed unbelievers, help to explain why according to the Pew study so many Americans--32 percent--want less religious influence on government. Twenty-four percent say that President Bush talks too much about his religious faith and prayer, and 28 percent deny that the United States is a Christian nation. Most dramatically, a whopping 49 percent believe that Christian conservatives have gone too far "in trying to impose their religious values on the country." This, then, is an unreported secret of American life: Considerable numbers of Americans, religious and secular, are becoming fed up with the in-your-face religion that has come to mark our society.

It was bound to happen. After years of quietly enduring vilification and being force-fed an annually increasing diet of nauseatingly assertive civil religion, a new breed of "in-your-face" atheists are rising up to confront the "in-your-face" Christians who have taken over the public square.

The public square has never been naked in America. The religious have never been excluded from public life in this country. The public square used to be an open forum in which to exchange opinions and search for common ground. Now it is becoming a battle ground.

Who still thinks that Americans are too "enlightened" to engage in real wars over religion?