As an Atheist...

[St. Anger]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

[4gold]

Here's where I'm going with this...where no contract exists between you and me, and I intend to destroy you, do you have any grounds for moral appeal? Or do you just go down fighting, because you understand morality is mere social contract, so the bigger consumes the smaller where the contract is nonexistent?

Well given that the bigger comsumes the smaller has played out hundreds of times throughout history, which do you think better describe reality? That there is an moral absolute that one can appeal to; Or that there is no such thing as moral absolutes, just contracts between willing parties.

Great question! I'll bet the bigger always believes in social contract, and the smaller always believes in moral absolutes.

[Goat]

Here's where I'm going with this...where no contract exists between you and me, and I intend to destroy you, do you have any grounds for moral appeal? Or do you just go down fighting, because you understand morality is mere social contract, so the bigger consumes the smaller where the contract is nonexistent?

Well given that the bigger comsumes the smaller has played out hundreds of times throughout history, which do you think better describe reality? That there is an moral absolute that one can appeal to; Or that there is no such thing as moral absolutes, just contracts between willing parties.

Great question! I'll bet the bigger always believes in social contract, and the smaller always believes in moral absolutes.

I'm not too sure of that.. in a lot of major campaigns , there often is the justification of bringing the Word of God to the heathens.. from the crusades, to the colonization of the New world, the the Manifest destiny... to the spread of Islam

[Seljuk]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

Philosophy views that absolute morality can exist independently of a god, and that a god would mearly enforce it. So, yes, it is possible, as atheism states there is no god, but technically there can be a supernatural.
For an atheist who follows the complete scientific perspective, no, as such a belief would be in the supernatural.
These people would state that morality is relative, and constructed by humans (which is also the view of philosophy -> social constructivism & subjectivity). They would state that morality is not absolute and humans must find what we see as logical criteria to base our human-made ethics on.
So, for example, I will always see murder as wrong, but that doesn't mean I believe that murder is wrong absolutely, just in my view, which I see as superior to a contradictory view as I believe my reasons to hold this ethic are superior to theirs.

[Jax Agnesson]

What I strongly believe to be right and wrong feels to me like absolute morality. Of course it does.

You feel absolute morality? Is that like a tingling feeling you get in your arm or an itch on your back?

Apparently you have some extra senses i do not (or i am unfamiliar with) because i have no sense or "feeling" of absolute morality.

I am using 'feels' in the emotional, not physical, sense.

Same problem. I don't have any emotion i am aware of that "feels to me like absolute morality."

Reflecting upon my emotions, i can say that certain actions disgust me, make me squimish, uncomfortable, happy, or anxious. But i don't know of any feeling that feels like or indicates absolute morality. That you "emotionally feel absolute morality" is as foreign to me as saying that you emotionally feel the color red.

Sorry, I should clarify. I do not wish to imply that what I 'feel' is an indication of an objectively existing 'absolute morality' any more than what I 'feel' about the special beauty of the colour aquamarine, or the wonderfulness of my local soccer team, is any guide to absolute worth.
What I was saying is that my condemnation of (say) racism 'feels to me' like an absolute. And even though there is no basis for claiming that it is 'absolutely' true that racism is wrong, neither is there any argument that can make me think it is right.
A racist of a certain kind, OTOH, 'feels' that his code of 'blood and honour' is right, and it seems to me that there are no logical arguments to prove him wrong. Only emotions and preferences. I detest what he stands for, he despises what I stand for, and this opposition can ony be changed by gradual, generational change in society's codes of ethics. Which I think is happening. Overt racism seems to be less acceptable generally today than it was forty years ago.
IOW, I believe that morality is an evolving social contract.
Hope that clarifies.

[Nickman]

I think our individual morals are formed first through our upbringing, as we grow our experiences in life add to the way we feel and interact with the world around us, all while society influences us as to what is socially acceptable. These combine to make each person act a certain way and feel a certain way toward each situation in life. A hardened life and rough upbringing tend to render a different mentality than a sheltered upbringing and so on and so forth. I base my morals on what I have experienced, and what society deems as acceptable. These forces make up what I feel is right and wrong. Before I joined the military ten years ago my mentality to what was right, wrong, and acceptable were quite different than they are today. My ideas have become more strict in the sense of moral and acceptable standards.

A great example of society influencing morals is in Japan. Wearing shoes in ones house is frowned upon and disrespectful. This is not universal but to the Japanese it is customary.

In Korea older folks are always to be respected and giving up your seat is customary. Not giving up your seat is rude even when the older person tells you to get up. That happened to me. I didn't know the custom so I was like get outta here old man this is my seat. So there I was standing the rest of the train ride

Bottom line for me is that most people have never left the usa or even their hometown to see a complete 180 from what they know and believe. They think this is how it is everywhere, but its not. Your morals stem from your environment, which is your upbringing, experiences, and your society.

[mal]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

Easy…..all a Christian has to do is produce a tangible god and have him claim morality comes from him.
‘Argument from Ignorance’ a fallacy in reasoning, X is valid because you cannot prove X is invalid. Morals come from god you say, this is an argument from Ignorance as you have no evidence to support your claim.
I say morals do not come from god…..if your argument were valid then so is my last statement….to argue against my statement is to argue against your own.
That which may be asserted without evidence may be rejected without evidence.

[PREEST]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

Why do you assume that there has to be a something or someone that decides ultimate morality?

Once you remove any kind of celestial being from the equation, it makes answering this question quite easy.

Morals and ethics are innate. If we did not know that things like murder, theft, rape and perjury weren't kosher then we would not have made it this far as a species. Religious people say things like 'If God doesn't decide moral absolutes then we can run around doing whatever we want' Yet, why do we not see people out on the streets doing this kind of thing all the time? Also, if religious people are so much more aware of these moral absolutes, what makes them commit heinous crimes?
If god decides ultimate reality, then where do non-believers get their morals from? What makes an a non-believer know right from wrong? Furthermore, what makes an atheist, like myself, even care for humanity?

Morals and ethics are not given to us from god. Is it really so hard to accept that they are innate? That they come from within us?

Again, not a difficult question to answer when you remove god from the question.

[Pascal's Abyss]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

The way I see it, believing what is right or wrong has nothing to do with believing in a god.

The person themselves can say "There is no God, but I feel murder is always wrong."

I don't see the dichotomy, so maybe someone should explain it to me if I have it all wrong, but imo, the theist says "There is a God and he sets what is right and wrong." and the atheist says "There is not god and I decide for myself what is always right and wrong."

These simply look like two different view points to me.

[mal]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

The way I see it, believing what is right or wrong has nothing to do with believing in a god.

The person themselves can say "There is no God, but I feel murder is always wrong."

I don't see the dichotomy, so maybe someone should explain it to me if I have it all wrong, but imo, the theist says "There is a God and he sets what is right and wrong." and the atheist says "There is not god and I decide for myself what is always right and wrong."

These simply look like two different view points to me.

I would modify this a little, I would say Atheist see no evidence of god or morals coming from god and theist have zero evidence and zero reasons to beleive otherwise.....

[PREEST]

Can an Atheist really believe in moral absolutes and still be a true atheist? If so, who sets what is and isn't a moral absolute? Who has the power?

The way I see it, believing what is right or wrong has nothing to do with believing in a god.

The person themselves can say "There is no God, but I feel murder is always wrong."

I don't see the dichotomy, so maybe someone should explain it to me if I have it all wrong, but imo, the theist says "There is a God and he sets what is right and wrong." and the atheist says "There is not god and I decide for myself what is always right and wrong."

These simply look like two different view points to me.

You're right, it has nothing to do with god, it's innate. Second, if you believe it has nothing to do with god then I can assume you are not Christian? Christians claim that our morals come from god. Morals include right and wrong. Don't tell me some are innate and some are given from god. They're either of god or they're not. I say they are not. For Christians, right and wrong has everything to do with god. He tells us what right and wrong is, apparently.