Atheists. Do you agree with this idea?

No.

i am wary that this is a quote mine, Dawkins supports the King James Bible Initiative solely for the academic benefit it has towards English history and literature

you could say the same thing about fictional works by Chaucer or Dickens

so yes i agree with the totality, that the value here is purely an academic one, not necessarily a theological one

Speaking for western europe and the americas dominant cultures it is true. Our past does define what our culture looks like now. It doesn't mean we need to be christians now. It is just recognition of the history of our culture.

Well, it's more true for England than for the U.S., but I would agree that the Bible is part of the essential canon of Western Civilization.

I notice you left out this quote:

"it is important that religion should not be allowed to hijack this cultural resource"

And yes, I agree that it's important to read the Bible as it is important in ways that aren't religious.

It's a good idea to learn why the people around you act the way they do. So I think people should try and at least skim through a Gospel.

so yea..I agree

Without knowledge of it you would miss out on many subtle references in other works such as the Shakespeare plays.

In the UK that's true, though with my generation we are more familiar with Monty Python's elegantly twisted version of it

To some extent. It would be like being ignorant of Shakespeare.

No.

That sounds strangely communist to me, actually. Sort of rings the "Mao's Red Book" bell.

in a society where christianity is as present as ours, it is important to read the bible and understand why christians are idiots for believing it, yes.