Fanatcism

Fanaticism is a belief or behavior involving uncritical zeal or with an obsessive enthusiasm. Philosopher George Santayana defines fanaticism as "redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim". The fanatic displays very strict standards and little tolerance for contrary ideas or opinions.

In his book Crazy Talk, Stupid Talk, Neil Postman states that "the key to all fanatical beliefs is that they are self-confirming....(some beliefs are) fanatical not because they are 'false', but because they are expressed in such a way that they can never be shown to be false."

Fanaticism has many types and variations, such as Ethnic and racial, nationalistic or patriotic, political and ideological, and religious fanaticism.

Ethnic or racial fanaticism relates to the strong association with a language, region and tribe or race. Such people try to exclude others from their community and try to assert their rights on the basis of their ethnic or racial background. Some, like Jürgen Habermas and Bruce Barry, have argued that the legitimacy of modern states must be based on a notion of political rights of autonomous individual subjects. According to this view, the state should not acknowledge ethnic, national or racial identity but rather instead enforce political and legal equality of all individuals. Others, like Charles Taylor and Will Kymlicka, argue that the notion of the autonomous individual is itself a cultural construct. According to this view, states must recognize ethnic identity and develop processes through which the particular needs of ethnic groups can be accommodated within the boundaries of the nation-state.

The 19th century saw the development of the political ideology of ethnic nationalism, when the concept of race was tied to nationalism, first by German theorists including Johann Gottfried von Herder. Instances of societies focusing on ethnic ties, arguably to the exclusion of history or historical context, have resulted in the justification of nationalist goals. Two periods frequently cited as examples of this are the 19th century consolidation and expansion of the German Empire and the 20th century Nazi Germany. Each promoted the pan-ethnic idea that these governments were only acquiring lands that had always been inhabited by ethnic Germans. The history of late-comers to the nation-state model, such as those arising in the Near East and south-eastern Europe out of the dissolution of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empires, as well as those arising out of the former USSR, is marked by inter-ethnic conflicts. Such conflicts usually occur within multi-ethnic states, as opposed to between them, as in other regions of the world. Thus, the conflicts are often misleadingly labelled and characterized as civil wars when they are inter-ethnic conflicts in a multi-ethnic state.

Nationalistic and patriotic is an ideology that involves an individual identifying with, or becoming attached to, one's nation. Nationalism involves national identity, by contrast with the related concept of patriotism, which involves the social conditioning and personal behaviors that support a state's decisions and actions.
This relates to strong affiliation with one's motherland or nation. For example in Sub-continent Hindu nationalists developed an ideology of Bharat Maata (India mother) and akhand Bharat (United India). On the basis basis of this ideology unprecedented bloodshed was witnessed during the partition and Kashmir conflict.
Political or ideological fanaticism stems from a strong affiliation with a political ideology such as communism, socialism and fascism etc. These ideologies have also caused bloody conflicts worldwide including two world wars.

Religious fanaticism generates from blind faith in a religious ideology. The world have witnessed brutal and bloody consequences of religious fanaticism in the form of Christian fanaticism during medieval ages and Muslim fanaticism in the 21st century.

In short fanaticism of every type escalates bigotry, intolerance, hate and bloody conflict. Therefore we should keep our faculties of thinking and reasoning open to keep the menace of fanaticism at bay.