Bill Maher mocks 'ancient myths' in ad for Richard Dawkins' pro-atheism campaign

Real Time host Bill Maher appears in an ad for the atheist group Openly Secular released on Monday, saying he was eager to lend his voice to their campaign.

"It seems to me the most obvious decision a person could make in their life: do I want to make real-world policy decided on the basis of proven facts and the reaches of what humans have gotten to do in science?" Maher says in the ad. "Or do I want real-world decisions made based on ancient myths written by men who didn't know what a germ or an atom was, or where the sun went at night?" "I picked choice A."

The group is a collaboration between the Richard Dawkins Foundation and three other atheist groups. On its website, Openly Secular compares discrimination against atheists to the prejudices encountered by the LGBT communities.

"We believe that increasing visibility of secular people will lower prejudice against them, much as it has for the LGBT community," the group states. "For example, 68% of those who personally know gay or lesbian people favor marriage equality, compared with just 32% of those who don't know anyone."

In the ad, Maher says it's important for atheists to voice their objections to making decisions "based on myths."

"Don't let it look like an America where the most reasonable -- not to mention correct -- fact-based argument is really the weird one," he says. "The one held by a tiny minority of misguided eggheads. No, secularists are bigger than that, way bigger. But you've gotta show yourself. You might find you have more friends than you think."

Watch Maher's appearance for Openly Secular, as posted online on Monday, below.