Atheism is, in my opinion, a higher evolutionary state than theism. If you
want to talk about progress, the secular, scientific worldview has brought
us all kinds of advancements in virtually every aspect of life. Scientists,
not priests, discovered electricity, developed antibiotics, found a way to
travel to the moon; the list goes on and on. If you look back at human
history, religion has generally been the biggest impediment to scientific
progress. Its main use was (and continues to be) as a device allowing a
select, manipulative few to gain control over and wealth from the gullible
masses. Religion has had a role in almost every war in human history, and
there's been a clear trend over the past few centuries: The more secular a
country is, the less likely it is to go to war.

It's popular among secularists these days to placate believers by saying
that science and religion can coexist, but I don't believe that's true. The
progressive believers, those who no longer believe in stoning disobedient
children to death, for instance, are deliberately ignoring a portion of what
they consider to be the word of God. The extremists, on the other hand, may
find themselves at odds with the modern world, but they're the ones who are
truly being faithful to their beliefs.

I'd also like to add that the human mind has the capability to convince
itself of the veracity of some incredible horseshit--look at Scientology,
for instance. Heaven's Gate? Jonestown? These people were all sure they were
right about the nature of the universe, just as you appear to be. The only
difference between your beliefs and theirs is that yours are more
widespread.

Take a step back and look at the modern world objectively. Religion
threatens us in a very serious way. Islamic terrorism is a threat now, but
it's nothing compared to what it will be when nuclear weapons technology
becomes more advanced and widespread. It doesn't help that the world's only
remaining superpower is being run by what the Muslims (and some of us) see
as a villain straight out of central casting.

Believing in God, in my opinion, is no different than believing in Santa
Claus. It may be comforting, but no matter how much you want to believe it,
a fat man in red is not going to make presents appear in front of the tree
in your living room. The world would be so much better off if people would
just see it for what it was.

[ Unknown author and source ]