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IS THERE A SOLUTION?Fanatical killing of all types, mostly religious, existed for centuries before reaching the flagrant levels of the 1990s. So far, nobody has found a cure.
The only remedy I can envision is the one prescribed by America's founders: Keep church and state separate. Let each faith operate freely, without impinging on others. Never let majority believers use governmental power to coerce smaller groups. That a sure formula for conflict.
As for dangerous cults and crackpot groups, maybe public exposure can warn off potential joiners.
The day of the zealot is plaguing humanity. Sensible people must do whatever's possible to uphold sanity.
(Haught is editor emeritus of West Virginia's largest newspaper, The Charleston Gazette-Mail, and a senior editor of Free Inquiry magazine. He has written 12 books and 150 magazine essays. This is from The Washington Spectator, Sept. 15, 1995.)(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
