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Atheists not believing in any gods is treated as a reason to think that atheists must believe nothing at all. On another extreme, since atheists don't worship god, they must worship the devil but that is another story altogether. (Read: The truth about atheism and atheists )
Some theists assume that atheists have no goals, no ideals, and no beliefs whatsoever. To call this "wrong" just doesn't seem adequate enough as a response because it's wrong in every possible sense. The absence of one particular belief does not mean an absence of any beliefs at all — or even the absence of any related beliefs. (Read: The atheist's dilemma )
It is an error to think that a person can have no beliefs whatsoever, atheist or theist. The human brain is wired to forms beliefs without us willing or intending or initiating it — it happens subconsciously and is a part of our nature. It is also nonsensical to think that a person cannot "believe in" anything, if by belief we mean "placing trust or confidence in another." That, too, is simply a part of our human nature and occurs without us intending it. (Read: You can be killed in 13 countries just because you are an atheist )
But what we can do consciously is choose what to believe in. As a child, we believed in the tooth fairy and Santa Claus but we outgrow from this beliefs as we age. Similarly, an atheist might choose not to believe in God due to their belief that god doesn't exist - the belief that there is no sky daddy up there watching our every move is a belief to.
Atheists do believe things. Where atheists differ from theists is that the atheists do not believe in any gods. Granted, for theists their god might be so important and vital that not believing in it may seem just like not believing in anything at all — but really, they aren't exactly the same. Even if a theist cannot comprehend the idea of having values, meaning, or purpose in the absence of their god(s), atheists are able to manage it quite readily because atheists believe that humans are capable to be good without the promise of heaven and a boogeyman to keep us in our best behavior.
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