10 myths about atheists that just won’t go away

4. Atheism is responsible for some of the biggest crimes against humanity

Most atheists who engage in open debate about religion can tell you that without fail, almost every single argument will involve Hitler, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot. The reason is many people believe they committed their crimes against humanity because of their lack of belief.

To start, one must first eliminate Hitler, while one of the evilest people on the planet, it is a misconception he was an atheist, as he, in fact, invoked God many times in his speeches and writing. “I believe today that my conduct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator,” Hilter wrote in his book Mein Kamf.

Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot on the other hand were in fact atheists, there is no denying this. Yet their atheism is wrongfully to blame for their atrocities. As Sam Harris wrote in the LA Times:

“The problem with fascism and communism, however, is not that they are too critical of religion; the problem is that they are too much like religions. Such regimes are dogmatic to the core and generally give rise to personality cults that are indistinguishable from cults of religious hero worship.”

Atheism has no doctrines that could give justification for these dictators to rule “in the name of atheism,” they simply happened to be atheists and terrible brutal dictators.