Nothing new here, however Gerson goes on to explain how his vision of atheism's model is flawed, while describing what I took to be most systems of morality - religious or secular - ever created. Not all of them fall under this description, but I imagine a majority will. "Some argue that a careful determination of our long-term interests -- a fear of bad consequences -- will constrain our selfishness."
I understand the implication that he's saying atheistic morality is just the avoidance of consequences, but taking those two statements he made "Careful determination of our long-term interests" and "a fear of bad consequences." This more or less describes Christian morality. The first part to honor god with good works and honest love of others, the second a fear of hellfire. Where's the surprise in this? People think about their future and weigh out the consequences of their actions? How dare they!
He also specifically states that atheists lack the ability to have objective morality, which is silly. Morality can be as subjective or objective as you like, it just depends on what your goals are and what you're willing to put into it. You can believe very much in god and the truth of a holy text and still be a self-centered cockgoblin. Or you can be a selfless, charitable person who happens to be an atheist. It's a matter of prioritization, not theology. The people who want to function in groups will tend to shift the focus from the self to others, and the people who want to function as individuals will tend to shift the focus from others to the self. You'll get that same division along other lines such as justice, fairness, equality, etc... For every devout racist you'll find a secular humanist. For every secular hedonist you'll find a devout social worker.
Where does morality come from? To be blunt it comes from a combination of biology and history. Sounds terrible when you put it like that, and sometimes it is. But it's not because someone does or does not believe in a god of some type. It's because everyone's situation is different and everyone has different goals. But hey, if you want to discredit everyone who doesn't prioritize based on the supernatural, more power to you.
