Letters to the Editor
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Fundamentalism, Islamic or other, should be shunned.
In a nation like America, where (theoretically) there is pluralism of religion, fundamentalist sects can exist without endangering all the rest of us. But in a nation like Iran, where they are the official government, they are poison.
And yes, in Abu Gareb or Guantanamo, taunting those beliefs may be the most fun part of torture, especially for female guards. (Smearing a fundamentalist with what a female guard claims is her menses, and watching him flinch, must seem like justified feminist revenge, especially to Salon readers.) But it simply justifies the fundamentalists sending more of his sons, and when the males run out his "inferior" children of the other sex, to kill more Americans.
They must be shunned. Middle East nations, no matter how much oil they have, must be made pariahs in the world community unless and until they grow up. Next, we can talk about shunning nations that host the Olympics, who sell poisonous lead crayons and economic devastation at Wal-Mart.