What the Eff is Atheism?

[Lombardian]

I love atheism, with all my heart. But it saddens me to realize that many people don't know what an atheist really is. Religion has been popping up more and more often at my school everywhere, and I've heard some people say some pretty stupid things about it, which I will recount, and debunk right now. People actually said these to me.

"Atheists are people who hate God."
"Hate" is not a word people should immediately associate with atheism, and if you do STOP IT. Everyone on this earth is capable of hating, religious beliefs aside.

Also, the above statement just doesn't make sense logically. You can't hate something that you don't believe exists. If there is anything that atheists do hate, it's the negative effects that religion can have on our world.

"Atheists worship Satan don't they?"
No! ... NO! ... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
*Cries in a corner*

"What is atheism?"
Now, of course different people are going to answer this question differently, but here's how I define it.

Atheism is disbelief in the supernatural, skepticism of claims that lack sufficient evidence, and an adherence to the scientific method.

Please feel free to add to what I have here, But I forbid a religious flame war, we already have about 20 other threads where that sort of discussion is actively taking place.

[Ashley Lanquist]

Atheism is actually from a Latin root. 'The' means god, and 'a' adds a negative form to the word. The word actually means 'believes in no god'. Sometimes, people can get Atheism confused with 'Agnosticism' which is my personal religion that basically means that I, as an agnostic, am not sure what I believe in. I hope this makes things clearer.