I moved to Flagstaff in 1977 and then quickly visited Sedona. Back then Sedona and West Sedona were miles of red dirt and juniper apart. This spring I visited Prescott Valley. Holy...!! Has it built up.

If something does not exist there can be no evidence for it. But you seem to have some evidence for the existence of a god so you are a theist. So own up to it. You seem to be waiting for god to tap you on the shoulder and say 'I don't exist so you don't believe I exist' so it is safe for you to consider yourself an atheist.
Maybe you believe that an atheist is one who says that there is no god? But the word atheist is composed of the Greek 'a' (without) and 'theist' (one who believes in the existence of god). No evidence is needed to be an atheist. Evidence can only rationally be needed for something in order to consider it real. If someone says he has evidence for god, then that is something positive about reality so you can have him prove that the evidence exists. If he cannot then he is wrong. If he can then you can decide whether it is correct that the evidence is actually for a god.
I know a guy who swears that back when he was using drugs that at a lunch counter two demons sat down next to him and then more recently he claims that it was god telling him that he was living his life wrong when he was knocked face down on his driveway with a heart attack. I would discount both of his beliefs because he has no evidence to link to actual demons or to an actual god. A Jehovah Witness stopped by a couple of times to prove that god exists. The evidence he gave was the fact that the trees, etc. are too complex and have design so god must exist since that could not happen without an consciousness. But he was not pointing out any kind of complexity but rather simple patterns noticeable to a human mind and no connection to any god like thing.
Deduction from evidence for a god requires more than first assuming a god and defining
its properties and then finding stuff that fits the definition. You have to find stuff first that would imply the existence of a god.
You say, "...as I need believable evidence to prove there IS a God, I would have to actually see something to prove to me that there is not." You are correct about the first part, but see something that does not exist is impossible. There is no evidence for what does not exist, only 'no evidence' for showing that something positive exists. An absence of a belief can be changed when some positive evidence is seen that implies that something is there to exist. A newly born baby begins life without a belief in the existence of a god and is an atheist whether it has the ability to call itself or not.
What I am doing here is called atheism which tries to give reasons why a theist's belief might be incorrect. It is usually a waste of time but you seem to want to be rational about existence.

I wish I lived in Flagstaff, more jobs there. I have lived in Sedona, Az. for 26 yrs.it is a complicated story of how my wife and I moved here from NJ.

Are you talking Flagstaff type of No. Az or say Arizona strip country? Recall, earlier this year we had a denizen of the Az strip murdered in cold blood in Oregon. Talk about "hands up"!

I have talked to a number of people here in No. Az. and they have told me that most of Freedom Groups have gone underground due to fear of the Feds. Az with it's multi-variable terrain would make it a very defensible. Unfortunately there are many Californians who have moved here.will be the first ones who will cause chaos because they are ill-prepared. Same with the Fluffy Bunnies in the City I live in. They will be screaming from the tops of Red Rocks for Flying Saucers to rescue them.Other than that my wife and I feel pretty safe living here. I do have protection for myself and my wife.

I love Heinlein.

Heinlein's "Job: a comedy of justice" has guy named Job falling down a deep hole with fire at the bottom and part way down a net comes out and grabs him. Hell turns out to be OK with his local bar, etc. When he gets himself sent to heaven it is like hell with all the stuck up angels, etc.
My late sister couldn't wait to get to heaven to hear heavenly music for eternity. That would truly be hell. She could not get her mind around what eternity would mean.

How Hell Works. You will like this 3 min video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s962R...
and you will know what you face. Right?

I cannot, in good faith, state that there is no evidence of a God...just like I could not honestly refute the existence of UFOs. Granted, common sense and my own reason deny their existence, but I can offer no proof to say that people have never heard God speak to them or seen a UFO.

I suffer from chronic back pain and spasms. To people who have never had back spasms, I may appear to be a loafer. This doesn't mean that my pain isn't real, just that most people who have never suffered from debilitating back pain have difficulty believing it is as bad as it is.

No...as much as I need believable evidence to prove there IS a God, I would have to actually see something to prove to me that there is not. I'm not yet willing to commit myself to either side of the issue.

I remember Rand or Brandon writing something about agnostics being irrational for not having evidence for god and believing at the same time that maybe there could be a god. If you have no evidence for something, you do not pretend that, that something might exist and be agnostic about it.
In Atlas Shrugged, just repeating of the oath required something more, an integrity that understood and believed the reason for the oath. It was nothing like those willing go through the formality of saying the Pledge of Allegiance or taking an oath in court as a witness or a jury member. One time as witness I had made arrangement with the defense attorney to have a secular oath. Of course that did not happen and I replied 'No' to the religious one with some stirring of the jury. They expected everyone to acknowledge a god so they had to go hunt up the Wisconsin secular oath. I got a little fear in me that maybe the judge would try some contempt of court thing on me. Lucked out. Same happened with jury duty oaths. Sad that they always have to hunt around for the secular version.

That type of definition of atheist is why I looked for some other word when I was young. 'disbelieve' to me seemed like some effort was needed. The only effort I needed to be without a belief in the existence of god was to keep my integrity among relatives, teachers, friends, and many others who thought that I was somehow defective without believing in the existence of a god. When my mother died when I was 13, my father was told by the social workers that we seven siblings would be placed in foster homes if he did not remarry. So he went wife hunting, which is not easy for a mother for seven kids. He found our step mother in a bar and since she wanted children and could not have children she agreed to be a mother. The bad thing from my and the other kids standpoint was that she was the daughter of a fundamentalist preacher. I was oldest at 14 and the youngest was 6. Then the making of theists started.The two youngest were girls and became god fearing and one brother (he had his own battle being a gay Christian, tolerance doesn't go far with many theists) also. She worked on me and my other three brothers and didn't get anywhere. I am not sure why she did not lose her faith because she was a smoker and her pastor would point to her during services to show who would spend eternity in hell. My dad liked music would go to church sometimes with her because of solo voices and music. He too was pointed out because he was an atheist and sure to burn in hell. Many theists seem to believe that they are tolerant of atheists. They do not act that way, at least not in my life, like the college bound English 12th grade teacher who took me by the arm and led me to the library to the shelf with the bibles and told me 'that is where you start Larry'.

Instead of assimilation, the US is now breaking down into multiple sub-cultures. This is not the Gulch, but it is an indication of societal breakdown. As I believe Nixon said, to a question of what is recession - when people stop believing in the future (or close to that). In this case, it is an indication of the eventual break up of the country.

There are a few atheists who say there is no god, thus placing them in the position of defining what does not exist and then adducing evidence to show what does not exist does not exist. They have not (in my opinion) thought through the issue. The words are simple: a theist is one who believes in a god and atheist is one who does not. No complications.

Here is the definition from a standard dictionary.
“atheist
Pronunciation: /ˈāTHēəst/
noun
A person who disbelieves or lacks belief in the existence of God or gods”
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/...

You cannot prove a negative, and the theists invariably try to get you to say something to put you in that position. The words are simple: theist is one who believes in a god and atheist is one who does not. No complications.

I always liked "freethinker."

Good, you have not fallen for the weak or strong atheist nonsense. I have a brother who is an atheist but calls himself a realist because of the bad connotations the word has. In high school I even fell for that and called myself an unbeliever. I just go with an atheist is one without a belief in god. Then there is no need for an atheism which to me would be trying to prove that a non-existent nothing does not exist. That sure would be a time waster.

I'm going to have to look atheism up, again, as you sound a lot more like me...an agnostic.

My understanding is that atheists insist there is no God, where agnostics are more open minded and, simply, want some kind of evidence before they will believe.

Would I be invited to live in "their" Gulch? I have to assume that my moral lifestyle would be all I needed for entrance, but swearing obedience to their chosen deity is not in the cards.

A Galt's Gulch would most likely be accepted and defended there than elsewhere. It might also be accepted in the South.

Ain't that the truth. I really frustrate them because I say I am an atheist, which means I do not believe in a god. They always respond, “so you say there is no god?” To which I say, no, I said I do not believe there is a god. If you claim there is a god, then you bear the burden of (1) defining the god in an intelligible way and (2) adducing evidence to support your proposition. I bear no burden. Until you do these things, I have no basis upon which to base a belief in a god.” None have ever passed the (1).

Well, since we are judged to be more evil than any other sort of person, I doubt whether you would be invited. After 75 years of being an atheist, I have pretty much given up on being thought of as good by anyone but the Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses who invite you to discuss god at your front door as long as you will put up with them. When I was about 11 I was threatened by the good Christian lady next door for playing with her proselytizing dishonest son because I said there was no god. Threatened to have my neck rung if I even walked on the sidewalk in front of her house. Haven't found things to have improved in the last 60+ years. Even a non-militant atheist is considered to dangerous to openly run for office.

I think some of the commenters are missing the point of Galts Gulch and the Redoubt. I see the Gulch as a place to prosper and innovate without the looters saying they own what you produce and have the right to regulate and tax your innovations. I also see it as a refuge from the looters, a place to regroup, rest if needed, and be around or at least close to others who are of a like mind. I think Mr. Rawles also sees the redoubt in such a light. And yes Atheists would be allowed and welcomed so long as they don't get offended by others religious displays, like they seem to be in the world today. if you don't like it don't look, just move along. JMHO

I currently live in a somewhat remote part of upper Midwest. I have sufficient financial resources to live as I please and learn skills I deem necessary. I do what I want for me not the looters. When and if the country returns to its roots and tenants of the Constitution then perhaps, just perhaps mind you, I would consider using my considerable abilities to assist in building or re-building of that country.

yes people of all economic positions are relocating in this area of the country, I sell lots of sleeping bags to them. they are going for good reason. they do not like what is going on. is it s gulch area, not really as they are mostly wanting to be independent of everything they can.

I have never had a problem being an atheist up here. In most cases its live and let live.