Hi. I'm trying to understand what is permitted in this group.

[Curmudgeoness]

5. Hi, and welcome aboard.

You did pick one sentence out of the whole paragraph that is confusing, since just stating that there is no proof of god can be hateful to some believers. But read on:

"Those who do believe in a deity should be aware that the underlying assumption for discussions in this Group is that either "god" does not exist or that the existence of "god" is in doubt. If you are offended by such notions, you probably should not participate in this Group.

Please keep in mind, this group is a "safe-haven" for atheists and agnostics."

As a safe haven, A&A is free to discuss religion, how religion affects our lives, lack of religion, etc. without fear of persecution. The statement you are questioning means that we cannot attack a member who is a believer who chooses to post here. You can attack the belief---and I suppose there are times that is a fine line. But as everywhere at DU, no discussion should become personal.

So, you can say that what "they" believe is idiotic, but you cannot tell another poster that they are an idiot. If you wonder how it works, read through a few of the threads and you will see that the rules are not restricting.