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Question 22

Have you ever been outed as an atheist by anyone?

• Well, sort of. There's a lot of devout believers in my office, that became clear right away, and I just didn't want to deal with it. I didn't want people I had to work with, like it or not, shunning me or questioning me...and I *really* didn't want someone to decide to try to save me, because I know that my patience for that sort of thing is...infinitesimally small. Just what you want, a whole office pissed off at you for snarling at someone who "just means you well". Ack.

  So I kept my mouth shut except when directly asked, and then I stated "I don't believe in god" instead of saying "I'm an atheist". The word atheist seems to set them off, you know.

  And then one day, a "friend" who works in the office merrily said to one of the most credulous of the lot, "but Robert, Michele doesn't (whatever). She's an atheist."

  Shit. I did catch some (shit, that is) for a while, but it seems that most people have either forgotten, or decided I don't really mean it, or whatever. Except for those who never did really understand even the concept of not believing. Those are the ones I worry about.

  Anyway...I like to keep my head down at work. My friends, family, distant acquaintances, strangers on the street; I'll tell any of 'em I'm an atheist. But when you have to see people every single day, and there's friction enough over other matters, there's no reason to add religion to the mix.

  Of course, I wish everyone else felt the same way. Funny how the believers never feel the least constraint about this sort of thing. Kind of explodes the "persecuted christians" schtick. (Shell #1031)

• Everyone else said no.