[yuuu]

It’s unclear what you’re trying to say. All aspects of Puritanism are bad because some people did violent things, historically? Nobody’s arguing with the latter, and the comment you originally responded to was, “We are free to pick and choose what we think is worth preserving or adopting.”

[smoldesu]

You are definitely free to associate with whoever you choose, just as others are are free to judge you for associating with those people. I'm someone who likes to give most ideas a fair shake, but I'm also not going to entertain a defence of fascism that highlights the decline of animal cruelty under Hitler. Most people who aren't me would probably walk away as soon as you bring up Orthodoxy.

[starkd]

The comparison to fascism is not even relevant here. Fascism is a corporate/government collaboration to achieve a specific end. Puritans were not talking about this. They were about self-reflection and self-improvement. The overzealotry of Puritism was based on populist uprisings. The failed collectivist experiments of the 20th century took a far greater toll on humanity than the Puritans ever did. By far.

[yuuu]

You have a good point. I tend to not entertain ideas based on overused strawman comparisons with Hitler and Nazis.