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Originally Posted by willravel
It is cut and dry. There's weak and strong atheism. Weak atheism, which describes the vast majority of atheists, understands that there is a near impossible chance that god exists, simply because one cannot prove a negative. Strong atheism is the absolute belief that god doesn't exist without even the smallest concession that one cannot prove a negative.
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Maybe we're not talking about the same thing here, but...
Either position is requires faith, even if one were to completely sidestep the whole subject of atheism. Belief in anything requires faith, either directly or indirectly. Driving across a freeway bridge is an act of faith. Riding a bicycle is an act of faith. Believing that the only things that are worth believing are those that pass some sort of ultimately arbitrary standard is definitely an act of faith.
Do strong atheists believe in their own existence? How can they? It's not like it's something anyone can prove in any kind of nontrivial way, it's not even something you can say is likely, because the notion of probability in this context doesn't really apply.