Given the increasing influence of religious fundamentalism on politics (e.g. the Christian right in the United States or the Muslim fundamentalism associated with Al Qaeda), the question of how we can conceive of law and order, or society itself, without employing repressive ideals becomes more urgent. We need a way of conceptualizing the origin and process of idealization (which is necessary for meaning, signification and community) without recourse to the absolute moral ideals of ‘Good’ and ‘Evil’. The current rhetoric used by the United States government against terrorism employs these moral ideals as does the rhetoric used by ‘the terrorists’ against the United States.