Light text on dark background: great for reading on small (mobile) screens and probably important for differentiating navigational elements from content.
Light text on dark background: pretty much horrible for reading on the (desktop/laptop) web.
Discuss.
(All pithy statements aside, I think this is a serious problem. Websites that use light on dark color schemes are in the minority for a reason. Is there a way to retain the structural composition of Athena but have a color scheme that isn't so hard on the eyes?)