Egregores blog has a post about atheism as the new bigotry. I think a lot of atheists, especially those who consider themselves progressives, will find this take either very surprising or as just another attack from the aggressively religious to force them to assimilate. I have no interest in assimilating anyone, and given some of the treatment I’ve received and observed from atheists and the traditionally religious, I have to say this: as in all things where it’s not just a difference of opinion but a difference of taproot-level attitude, the words that express the attitudes must be taken on a case by case basis.

I am not a person of absolutes (contrary to popular opinion), and there are a lot of conversations I’ve had with atheists where comments made to me might sound bigoted to casual passerby that were perfectly acceptable and even appropriate within the context of the conversation. That said, some conversations have simply revealed to me that yes, the occasional atheist is simply a religious bigot of a newer and trendier variety. This is always the loudmouth that makes the humanists, agnostics and civilized/meditation-based atheists look bad.
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Mr. Demartino reacts much as I do to these things (Daria)

I’ve seen it on PaganSpace and other places, and it damn near makes my head spin.

“A true Wiccan or pagan…” usually followed by “doesn’t”…

Aren’t we chest-poundingly pious? Ugh. The new testament of the Bible had this whole thing about not praying in public because even God cum Yahweh or Jehovah thinks it makes you come off like an asshole. While I wish more Christians would read it and consider it, it’s also a lesson that Wiccans can borrow from.

Here’s the reality:
A true Wiccan or Pagan is a carbon based life form. If you think you know what a “true” one is beyond that, your head is so far up your ass a crowbar probably won’t help you.

Let’s break it down, hopefully with less swear words on my part.
“Pagan” while heavily debated what this means, you can be assured it in no way means “one thing.” There is no code of “Pagan” behavior. That’s because “Pagan” is a shorthand for a whole lot of religion with sometimes wildly different moral codes behind them.

“Wiccan” is a shorthand for one religion that could easily be a bunch of different religions. We call it one because it’s easier than doing yet more sorting. Those who contend what a “true” Wiccan is are either contending that everyone follow the Rede¹ in the way that that person happens to interpret the Rede² or the person is an old-school Gardnerian³ and just being a jackass⁴ .

So don’t say “a true” whatever. If you insist on it, go back to your church, because you’re really not prepared to put on your big boy pants and deal with a little diversity.

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1. which in itself is not the hard and fast many think it is – it’s only actually been around since the 1970s and no one actually agreed to it, it just sort of got adopted and now has multiple varients [↩]
2. usually extreme pacifism to the point of being physically useless [↩]
3. some of them are really hung up on the difference between “first” and “legitimate. [↩]
4. not all Gardnerians are jackasses. Mostly just the American ones. Do not take this to mean I’m well disposed towards Britain. [↩]