You can Prove a Negative:

Both some atheists and theists alike claim you can not prove a negative. By this, they mean you cannot prove something does not exist.

This is untrue, and is based on poor understanding of the basic laws of logic.

- For example, one can safetly say a squared circle does not exist. This is due to the law of non contradiction. It is the case that something cannot be both what it is, and what it is not simultaneously. Example:

-> 'A' cannot be both 'A' and 'B' simultaneously, as to be 'A' it must not have the nature of being 'B' which has the nature of being itself and not 'A'. - So, 'A' can only be 'A', and 'B' can only be 'B'. They cannot exist as one simultaneously.

-> For a circle to exist, in its nature is to be completely round with no edges. A square has the nature of having four corners and in no way round. For a circle to be both a circle and a square simultaneously, it would need to have the nature of being both completely round and have 4 sides at the same time. But this is abusrd. The nature of a circle and square are distinct from one another, and to be both simultaneously would show a contradiction. To be more clear, both the nature of a circle and square cancel the other out, so they cannot exist as one thing.

-> Due to the above, you can prove that something does not exist. If something has contradictory properties as a squared circle would, then its the case that this cannot exist.

-> This is important to the theist/atheist debate. The relevancy is due to the existence of certain God's having properties that are contradictory with reality or itself.

Example: Some Atheists say a God cannot both have freewill and be omniscient. This is because to be omniscient, a God would know every possible action prior to its realization. If this is true, then a God would necessarily know every action it will commit before the actions realization. If that is true, the God does not and cannot have freewill. God cannot both be free to act but know how God will act.

Example2: Some atheists claim 'An omnibonevolent God cannot exist if there is gratuitous evil'. The argument claims that if a God is all loving, then gratuitous evil would not exist. This is because an all loving God would want gratuitous evil to not exist, and being omnipotent would allow it to prevent such evil. So the Atheist would say the existence of gratuitous evil is inconsistent with a God that is both Omnibonevolent and Omnipotent.

Due to the above examples, it is clear that people try to show that God has attributes that are inconsistent with reality, and therefore 'Proving a Negative' is both possible and very relevent to the question of 'Does God exist?'

Atheists do not say 'God does not exist':

This is untrue. That is to say, its bullshit. I think people who pull this line are what most people call... pussies. They know they cannot defend a position so they resort to saying that it is both not a position held by them or anyone else . That makes me want to literally punch their brain. Not their face, skull, or teeth. I want to punch their brain.

While it may be true that some atheists take the position of 'Being both without theism and knowledge of whether or not a God exists', it is still the case that many Atheists claim God does not exist. The latter can be refereed to as 'Positive Atheism'. This is because they make a positive claim. To be more clear, they hold a belief that entails an assertion. They believe that no God or Gods exist. So, this entails the proposition 'God (s) does not exist'.

Michael Martin is an example of such a person, he claims that the Christian God, and many other gods are impossible. He has a book titled 'The Impossibility of God' which outlines reasons to think the existence of the Christian God or the classical God of Theism is incoherent and self contradictory, therefore does not exist. So there are some people who both the belief 'God does not exist' and claim 'God does not exist' simultaneously.

This was all typed fairly quick, so if I need to rewrite stuff I will later. That is if I care at all. Chances are I won't considering I don't even care that I'm sitting on a chip bag full of ranch dressing.

Why do Atheists not believe in God?

I think there are primarily 4 reasons people do not believe in God.

1. They think the existence of a defined god or gods is contradictory, therefore impossible.

Some atheists think the existence of a God such as the Christian God is inconsistent with reality in a way that renders its existence impossible. Example: The Christian God is omnibonevolent. If that is the case, evil cannot exist. However, it is the case that evil does exist in many forms, some not a result of man. This means an omnibonevolent God cannot exist. Therefore the Christian God is impossible.

2. They think the existence of a defined god or gods is improbable given certain facts.

Some Atheists think the existence of a god such as the Christian God is improbable given certain facts about the world. Example: The Christian God is claimed to be the creator of both the universe and life. Current scientific evidence shows the universe may be self caused without need for a creator. Also, current scientific evidence shows that life may originate from non life due to natural processes that are not guided by intelligence. These two facts make some people believe the existence of a certain god such as the Christian God is improbable.

3. Emotional reasons.

Some Atheists do not believe in a god or gods because of emotional reasons, rather than intellectual ones. The existence of suffering, non answered prayers, and other personal grief leads some people to think that a god or gods does not exist, or is unlikely to exist due their emotional stress and their inability to cope with it.

4. Stupid reasons.

Some atheists think a god or gods does not exist for very stupid reasons. A simple example is people who claim the bible is a fairytale, therefore there is no god. This is a stupid reason to think a god or gods do not exist. A god or gods can exist independent of the truth of the bible. The bible can be completely false and man made while there is simultaneously a divine creator, or intelligent force in the universe. The thinking behind this is due to ignorance I would think.

Ill expand on this later if I must.