Definition of Atheism/Atheist with no catches.

# Atheism is commonly defined as the position that there are no deities. It can also mean the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. A broader definition is simply the absence of belief that any deities exist.
# someone who denies the existence of god
# related to or characterized by or given to atheism; "atheist leanings"

None of these is correct, not by a long chalk. Atheists don't assert that there are no deities. They say that, taking into account what's expected of a deity (that he must break all the rules of physics, be far more complex than the complexities he's supposed to explain, and must reveal himself in an incontrovertible manner so as to leave evidence once and for all for his existence), atheists have decided that the chances of his existence are minimal. No denial, no lack, no absence of belief (whatever that means). We look at the notion put forward, examine the pros and cons and reach a conclusion as to whether we should allow this proposed fellow to influence our lives. Atheists just say "no" at the end of all that. It's a process of reasoning. It involves no certainties. It doesn't need to. And I have no idea what "atheist leanings" are. Of course, I speak for myself, though I'm not expecting too many fellow atheists to come battering down my door. Not in a big way anyway.

Plenty of people of faith think about the big questions and have used reason to choose it. Perhaps Jon is one of them. I know I am, I think about and re-evaluate what I believe constantly.

No-one's denying that many people of faith have arrived at their position by reasoning (though we also know that huge numbers have arrived there simply because they were told what to believe). The argument of atheists is not that thinking believers lack reason, but that they have based their reasoning on false tenets. The challenge of atheists to believers is to tell us what tenets have formed the basis of their reasoning process. They usually aren't difficult to dismantle.

Plenty of Atheists are Atheists because they were raised into it or because some aspect of or person in their former faith invoked fear or anger in them.

Well, you can be raised in an atheist family (or, more likely, a faith-apathetic family) but still be influenced by the all-pervasive religion that surrounds us in schools, the media and in the street. The latter assertion, that there are hordes of militant atheists (I'm helpfully rewording Jacko's post because I know that's what he's getting at - track record an' all that) who are no more than bitter, twisted, resentful and angry ex-Christians is just a stock, old, worn-out, knackered, unimaginative and lazy old line that religion constantly likes to peddle. As with God, there is absolutely no evidence to support it. Unless believers know different and are going to give it to us. I won't be holding my breath.

Atheists come to their belief or lack of it by thought and reason is a dogma.

Someone else will have to tell me what this means. It appears to make no sense.