Was a great facebook debate as well.

But, I have denotation issues. I don’t think you and I understand fundamentalism in the same way. I didn’t even know what it was until speaking to a student that studied it in seminary.

A major component of fundamentalism is not adherence to fundamental principles: it is the strict adherence to perceived non-negotiables, which, more often than not, leads to hermitage and seclusion of the individual or entire community.

And “a group of individuals adopts the views of its most extreme members.”

Something to think about anyway.

Only one more comment: society is a legitimate collective if one realizes it represents nothing more than set of individuals whom, ignoring complex network relationships, are affected by others’ individual action.

In this way, if we are citizens of a state, we are affected collectively by the decisions that state makes on our behalf.

Pure democracy is just as flawed as pure Capitalism, pure Marxism, and autocracy. We need not fear the state in itself. It is an institution and evil only insofar as the actors that utilize it. Much like any market.

And, by the by, this is my opinion. Normative assertions backed, weakly, by facts. But given my current knowledge and experience, I find it consistent and useful. I welcome challenges.