Unhyphenated Atheism

I am an atheist and an unhyphenated one meaning I eschew all unchallengeable allegiances to a religion, nationality, culture or people. I only abide by reality, objective evidence and the scientific method. Atheism gets its power from science, which lies in a total commitment to rationality and objective evidence. Science does not work if it includes any bias or allegiance to a nationality, race, ethnicity, political cause or other view that cannot be supported by objective evidence and reason or cannot be challenged by contrary evidence. Darwin himself said, "A scientific man ought to have no wishes, no affections, - a mere heart of stone." This is an essential feature of this worldview. Atheism must also eschew these or lose its power and become just another ideology. This philosophy has brought me into conflict with my Jewish people of origin who see their religion as an inalienable essence of all tribe members and me as a traitor, self-hater or even anti-Semite. The book describes the many battles I have had to fight to maintain my atheist identity. My abandonment of the religion and its mandatory ethnic identity has been well worth it, however, as it has allowed me to feel free for the first time in my life and to be honest and even handed with everyone. I would therefore recommend it to any committed atheist faced with a similar dilemma.