The Age of New Fundamentalism

Fundamentalism. The word often conjures the impression and images of fanaticism, extremism and a strict literal interpretation of doctrine. The term is usually associated with religious connotations and   unconditional adherence to a set of irreducible beliefs. It's  key characteristic of rejection of diversity of opinion or tolerance of any form of alternative intepretation poses a challenge to any society operating on a pluralist and diversity model. Fundamentalism is usually associated with conflict but this is not always exclusively the case. In the early 21st Century new fundamentalism has emerged based on old beliefs and paradigms but with new messaging methods.

Historically, Islam has experienced several periods of turmoil based on fundamentalism or in some cases forms of nationalism which have been linked to religious beliefs (however inappropriate this form of association may be). Since the 7th Century, there have been many Shia and Sunni internal religious conflicts and in later centuries, state-level expansionism by Islamic caliphates or States. This is by no means unusual as Christianity, Hinduism and Shintoism have also been linked to Nationalism or quasi nationalist causes at various times and engaged in various actions to expand their territorial influences.

Fundamentalist conflict and expansionism has often attracted followers from other parts of the world distant to the actual geographical location in which the conflict is taking place. Therefore it's not unusual that entities such as Daesh (or Islamic State [IS] as it tries to present itself ) might attract followers from other nations and societies. What has made Daesh effective in the promotion of its ideal has been the careful alignment of its message to similar conflict narratives and dramatic motifs conveyed in Western  media.

This theme has been explored by Jeff Lewis, Professor of Media and Cultural Politics at RMIT,  who has commented "..consider the ways in which our news is structured, and the political debates which are perennially laced by visions of social, economic and ecological collapse.....IS has mimicked the style and force of these heroic and erotic apocalyptic narratives. An examination of the IS images and narratives reveals the same masculinist potency as Hollywood thrillers.."

During the 1930s and until the commencement of World War II, Nazi Germany was supported by sympathetic fascist movements which existed in the United States, Great Britain, the Baltic States and across Europe. The dire nature of Hitler's movement did not dissuade support for his ideology, which in many respects also had elements of a death cult, as evidenced by the conduct of the regime during the war and at the end in 1945. During WWII, the police/security organisation of the Nazi State, known as the SS (which coincidentally had the death's head as their emblem) had over 350,000 troops drawn from over 25 countries serving in its military arm, the Waffen SS. The German Army, the Wehrmacht, had many more bringing the total number of foreigners under German command to around 1 million.

During the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) between the Republican Government and the Nationalists under General Francisco Franco, in addition to the support for the two sides afforded by various Governments, over 45,000 volunteers from around the world supported the Republic of whom 32,000 were in combat roles in the International Brigades. A further 10,000 served in various capacities in medical, nursing and engineering. These volunteers were drawn from Europe, the United States and beyond. They were just a fervent in their belief for the cause as those who were born and lived in Spain.

Challenging and disproving the legitimacy of the public media narrative of Daesh in the Middle East remains as important a task as actual military action.