Steve, there are probably many different understandings out there of what the word "atheist" means, including among atheists themselves! You have just given your definition of the word atheist, but I'm sure you don't speak for all atheists.

I avoid this sort of pigeonholing and fighting over the definitions of terms by refusing to label myself as anything but a human being. ;-) I'm not an atheist. I'm not a theist. I'm not an agnostic. I'n not a Christian. I'm not a Buddhist. I'm not a Hindu. I'm not an existentialist. I'm not a deist. I'm a human being. Period. If people want to know what I believe, they have to talk to me at considerable length about many, many things, because I cannot be neatly defined by some debatable and possibly very misleading term like "atheist" or "agnostic" or "deist" or whatever else they might come up with. It's not that simple. You can't accurately define people most by such words, in my opinion, because the labelling words themselves usually mislead the listener, due to the listener's preconceived notions about the labels. If he is prejudiced against the label, he'll assume a whole bunch of negative stuff about the person labelled...but it may not be accurate. If he is prejudiced in favor of the label, he'll assume a whole bunch of positive stuff about the person labelled...but it may not be accurate.

The one vital thing about other people is character. To know their character, you have to get to know them...and that takes a good deal of time. You won't know their character by a label like "Christian", "atheist" or "agnostic"....it won't give you any insight at all into their character, because people of every sort of character, good and bad, are found under all those labels.

I know this from direct experience, not merely as a theory. ;-)

I don't concern myself with what other people "believe". I concern myself with their character...that is...how do they behave toward both themselves and others? That is the vital matter. That is the part that directly impacts you, me, and them.