Beyond Atheism

I've talked about what atheism is but let's extend our conversation beyond the definition:

Atheism is a stance on what we can know; inherently, it makes no judgement on the "goodness" or "morality" or "societal benefits" or "economic strategy" of religion.  There are obviously some atheists that are openly hostile to religion but it is not necessarily so.  There are also atheists that are very accepting of the behavior of most religious people and blend well into those circles.  Typcially though, most atheists fundamentally disagree with the authoritarian stance of religion and its resistance to improvement or refactoring (commonly referred to as "religious dogma") but only take action when those ideas clash in physical reality.

Important groups in atheism:

Secularists:
I'm sure you've heard about "separation of church and state"...this is typically what these people are about.  Most atheists don't care one way or another about religion EXCEPT where those beliefs impose on others.  You need not be an atheist to be a secularist, but typically these ideologies marry well.

Humanists:
Humanism is an ideology which espouses reason, ethics, and justice, whilst specifically rejecting supernatural and religious dogma as a basis of morality and decision-making.  This last part is important to note, because the masses usually don't recognize any way of determining what is "moral" beyond religion and can't understand decision-making without superimposing an authoritarian view of things upon the social-economic-political system.

Final thought:
If you are an atheist, you have not reached enlightenment.  We are all FOREVER students, always growing and always changing.  You can't latch on to some other form of "divinity" whether it be a nation, an economic model, or "nano-technology."  We must learn to treat each other with respect and continue to learn in a healthy, cooperative manner.  Until we have both intelligence and benevolence, whatever else we argue about or discover is meaningless.

The bottom line is, this is not a battle of beliefs...this is a battle against irrationality.