Do some atheists still thin Religion is a mental illness?

[Rod Serling]

I like Silverman and Maher and I am an atheist, but religion isn't a mental illness. I find it disparaging of mental illness. Although I dislike the effects of religion in general or programming kids one way or another, I think labeling them all as simply irrational and their beliefs bad is simplistic. I don't like the New Atheist trend to insist everybody should be atheists any more than insistence everybody should believe in God. Moderate and accepting believers who don't peddle creationism, are pro science, pro separation, don't judge atheists as morally or socially of less value--basically nice and intellectual people--are better to me than an atheist who personally ridicules theists. And I am not in anyway even slightly tempted nor could I be religious. Now higher levels of religiosity does become a form of religion when fear of hell and different beliefs makes one antagonistic and inflexible.