Atheists are the most distrusted minority

[Benfea]

http://www.ur.umn.edu/unsreleases/find.php?ID=2816&from=umnnews

When I criticize religion around here, my posts tend to get deleted. I hope this one won't get deleted, but the fact that that happens around here is just another example of what is mentioned in the above link. It is acceptable in our society to criticize atheists or equate them with immorality/amorality (I've even heard people on Air America do it… thanks a lot Randi), but it is not acceptable for atheists to criticize religion.

Just look at what's going on in the world today: Muslim terrorism, the Israeli occupation/oppression of Palestinians, and of course, Christians egging on the current slaughterfest/torture party in Iraq, Hindu-Muslim conflicts in India, the Muslim-Christian conflict in Sudan, etc. As of right now the most immoral activities taking place on a large scale are either created by or exacerbated by religion. If you look through your history books, you'll find pretty much the same thing, yet it is we who are immoral?

Why?

Because we don't need to be threatened with eternal torture nor bribed with eternal pleasure to engage in moral behavior? If anything, that religionists require such outrageous motivations to act morally is an indictment of religion, not of atheists.

Atheists and agnostics make up around 10% of our population, give or take. Out of 535 elected officials representing the nation in congress, what percent do you think are atheist or agnostic? In all of history, there has only ever been one openly atheist serving in congress, and the only way he got away with it was by not telling anyone he was atheist until he was out of office. Not only are we completely unrepresented in congress, but an openly atheist person cannot get elected.

Pardon me for ranting.