Regarding the idea of the existence of God, it is the theist who makes the positive claim and it is his, therefore, to prove. The atheist has no negative obligation to disprove another's wild claims. It is an impossible task to soundly refute any and all fantastic claims through all of history every time they're made using logic and evidence -- there would be none. It is a logical impossibility to prove a negative. An inability to disprove does not prove.No -- someone has to bear the burden of proof when making a claim and it should be the storyteller not the audience.
Atheism is not the positive claim that "there is no God." The atheist says, instead, "I don't believe in God." Non-belief is the proper logical starting point in thinking about God. The position of the atheist is that he remains unconvinced of the theist's claims. If someone maintains the positive claim that "God exists," then it is the claimant who should be eager and able to provide logical or physical evidence.
Atheism should be properly described as the mere non-belief in the unfounded and fantastic idea of God in the absence of any logical, legitimate and provable arguments.
Likewise, the person who makes the positive claim that there is no God is obliged to provide proofs for their claim. That person would not be an a-theist, but an anti-theist.
VIDEO
Reason vs. Faith, Ayn Rand Institute. Yaron Brook and Onkar Ghate discuss the roles of reason and faith in Western civilization.
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