[quote=Magic Magnum]
 As for OT vs NT, there's a lot of scriptures in both that can be used to reinforce he was a violent sadist or that he was a forgiving saint. But such variance and inconsistency is what tends to happen the book is written by a ton of sand people who were not ever allowed to alter one anothers work. That or god is bipolar.2) Not really. Most atheists I run into to tend to say "You Christians are awful, but Jesus was kind of decent" still disagree with Jesus in regards to if Christianity is true. They just find Jesus to generally be a more decent and moral person than most Christians are, so it's basically another way of them saying "I wish you Christians were more moral".
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1) I'd slightly disagree. I'd say the bible states that he's neither all-forgiving, nor is he vengeful, but rather trying to balance the two out. If he was one or the other, he wouldn't ever interact with humans (he'd just have destroyed humanity by now or abandoned it). My interpretation is that God is motivated by his love of humanity as a whole (in the sense that he desperately wants to see it improve. He's not particularly fond of the current human condition), To this end, he will do absolutely anything necessary. As such, he's aggressive when he considers it necessary, but wouldn't go out of his way to be cruel either.

As for the desert people 2000 years ago argument, that can be turned on its head. The fact that it's ancient is actually part of its appeal. The fact that it's been unchanged for thousands of years makes it more "timeless" rather than "outdated". If you compare it to music, it's kind of like classical vs. pop music.

2) Obviously, Atheists don't percieve Jesus as perfect, but they do tend to perceive him as very good. And I have seen non-Christians argue that Christians should be more like Christ/consider Christians a misaimed fandom of Christ. To the extent that one considers Jesus to be good, the more valid my statement is.