I think many people are unable to differentiate between on attack on a belief and a personal attack, perhaps because for some people, belief is integral to who they are. But that’s unfortunate, in my opinion, because I feel that many ideas and beliefs deserve to be attacked. (You might even say that fighting for what I believe is integral to who I am.)
Sure, a measured, intelligent debate is much to be preferred. Respect should always be treasured. But sometimes it’s just not effective, not enough.
I have been known to vociferously and venomously attack racism, sexism, homophobia, and, yes, sometimes religion. Because I often perceive aspects of organized religion as an exclusionary tactic, as a method of oppressing certain portions of the population, an excuse for judging. And I’ll agree that I am sometimes a jerk.
But on the specific issue of religion, there’s a huge disconnect that I can never figure out how to get around. For me, to blindly believe in an all-knowing, all-powerful entity just because you’re told to just doesn’t make sense. So how do I effectively argue that without the opposite person accusing me of accusing them of being stupid? How do I express that I support the right of everyone to practice whatever religion they wish, that I’m happy for them that religion gives them an anchor or the peace that they need in their life, but at the same time I truly believe that they’ve bought into an artificial construct, a mass hysteria, if you will? That’s not a personal attack; that’s my opinion.