On 05/31/99 14:10 the inimitable Robert Odom made this comment ‹
>Anyone else near that age? [17]
I was 13 just last week, for about four days. But most often, most always, I'm way older than that. But I've been a practicing, heralded atheist (admittedly in the New England area, where people are not cast the evil eye for being a bit snooty in _some_ way) since I can remember. In fact, I love to hear my 6 year old say things like 'gods are just make-believe' and 'what's that actor like in real?' To date, both my daughters remain atheistic in basic outlook, because, after all-
"Beliefs, including religious ones, are learned. Which makes atheism a normal state of affairs and religious beliefs a learned "abnormality". No psychological theory is necessary to explain the causes of a normal base state. Any psychological theory of learning, attitude change or socialization can explain the causes of religious belief."