You bet it feels good. I struggled for 35 years to be a born again Christian. I could never measure up. I hated myself, I was terrified of death, and I felt like my life was under the control of some demented child. When I finally got up the nerve to even ask the tentative question of what if there really isn't a god at all, I was shocked to find that the concept was absolutely liberating! No god, no damnation, no faking, no never being good enough, no lying. Just understanding that I am myself not because of some greater cause that I will not ever understand, but which might be revealed when I die, but no guarentees. I am here by chance. Funny now that thought unloads tons of pressure. I don't have any performance anxiety now because I don't have to live up to impossible standards set in place by someone who never was a human themselves. And don't give me that bull about Jesus. I have not seen enough substantial evidence to prove that Jesus even existed in the first place to believe in the whole christ thing. Not only do I feel completely free, I now know what an utterly destructive influence religion has on the lives of everyone on the planet. How many atheists have been willing to die for their unbelief? ZERO! Now ask how many people of different religions have been ready to put their life on the line, along with the lives of every innocent by-stander withing bombing distance. The answer is countless. And what are they dying for? A god that should be able to use its almighty power to defend itself, thank you very much, without the help of a puny human. If gods are so great, why are so many people absolutely miserable because of the tenents of their religions? Female genitalia mutilation, honor killings, excommunication, damnation, "God Hates Fags!", the list of destructive forces created because of some imaginary being who can do special favors for you, thus changing space and time, just so your favorite team will score big on the next game, continues into infinity

Geez! I didn't know I was in for a rant, but I guess I needed to vent. I live in Texas where being an atheist is below a pedafile on the list of who a Texan would invite for dinner. Peace to everyone.