Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Fundamentalism - A Dangerous Delusion

"If there is a dangerous delusion in the world, it is not so much moderate religion, as Dawkins would have it, but fundamentalism in all its forms — ideological, scientific and religious — as the imposition of dogma that brooks neither doubt nor respect for disagreement." - John Cornwell

While religious fundamentalism is indeed dangerous, it is to a large extent uncloaked and restrained/defused in the western world. Materialist fundamentalism however is not yet uncloaked and finds enormous support in the global institutions of science and global secular media. Militant desecrationist (fundamentalist) atheists such as PZ Myers and Richard Dawkins are presently revered in the scientific world. My concern here is not about atheism (I have many friends and relatives who are atheists) but fundamentalism of all kinds. It is fundamentalism that "brooks neither doubt nor respect for disagreement" that is the real danger for modern civilization.
....