Can you remember a single instance where a theist or group of theists said something inaccurate or misleading about atheists and then apologized for it? I can't. Yet, there have been numerous examples where atheists have admitted to exaggerating or misrepresenting something theists said and apologized for it. Just such an incident recently occurred. American Atheists apologized for misquoting Sarah Palin on one of their billboards. I am pleased that they corrected their minor error. I find it rather telling. It seems to me to be further evidence that atheists are generally more concerned with accuracy, intellectual integrity, and ethics than their theistic counterparts.
I think it is also worth noting that the error they made in the quotation did not actually change the meaning or intent of Sarah Palin. American Atheists quoted Palin as stating, "We should create law based on the God of the Bible", when in fact she claimed that our founding fathers believed such a thing. Basically, she was making shit up. In some ways it makes her look worse since it is clear that that is what she wants to believe and she is willing to lie about. The idea that the US was created as a "Christian nation" has been debunked over and over again. Accuracy is important so it was right of American Atheists to make the correction and apologize for their slip-up.
It would be nice if the religious right cared at all about accuracy, honesty, and personal ethics. I'm not counting on that happening any time soon.
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