All entries by this author

US Arms Sales Undermine Global Human Rights *

Dec 10th, 2008 | Filed by

US sells arms to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Colombia among other rights violators.… Read the rest



Turi Omollo on Rwanda and Human Rights *

Dec 10th, 2008 | Filed by

What can we in Rwanda and the rest of Africa celebrate on this day? … Read the rest



Abuses Persist as UDHR Turns 60 *

Dec 10th, 2008 | Filed by

In Zimbabwe, lawyers marched on Parliament and the Supreme Court to protest human rights abuses.… Read the rest



Universal Human Rights Day *

Dec 10th, 2008 | Filed by

Mary Robinson is thinking of two women today: Eleanor Roosevelt and Jestina Mukoko.… Read the rest



Psychologist Defends Teasing *

Dec 10th, 2008 | Filed by

Says teasing is seen as damaging because it is confused with bullying; almost admits that it sometimes is bullying.… Read the rest



The return of the cardinal

Dec 9th, 2008 12:26 pm | By

So then to round out the festival of silliness there’s darling Cardinal Buttercup I mean Murphy-O’Connor again. (Nice of the major UK newspapers to give him so much oxygen of publicity, isn’t it? Wouldn’t do for them just to ignore his absurd woolgathering, would it.)

It’s just the same old stuff – word for word, some of it. Once again ‘atheism has become more vocal and aggressive.’ There’s something intriguing about the way clerics and apologists like to get up and say harsh things about secularists and atheists all the time and then squeal like pigs when secularists and atheists have the gall to say anything in return. It’s kind of like a playground bully complaining about a kid who … Read the rest



SUVs at Altar, Detroit Church Prays for Bailout *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

Local car dealers donated three giant cars to display during the service, one from each of the ‘Big Three.’… Read the rest



Whither the Junior Dictionary? *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

Words like ‘saint’ and ‘buttercup’ have gone – what can it all mean?… Read the rest



Australian MP on Correlation as Causation *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

In April 1987 there was a march for Jesus. What happened in October 1987? The stock market crashed. Aha!… Read the rest



WSJ on Durban II, the HRC and ‘Islamophobia’ *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

‘If the Durban II drafters have their way, any challenge of Islamic teachings would be taboo.’… Read the rest



Independent Publishes More Catholic Apologetics *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

Cardinal notices conflict between religious belief and what it means to be liberal; chooses wrong side.… Read the rest



Still No Equality for Muslim Women *

Dec 9th, 2008 | Filed by

Nadia Jamal seems surprised.… Read the rest



Whither the hollyhock and the dew on the queen?

Dec 9th, 2008 11:59 am | By

So then there’s this other thing with this ‘junior dictionary’ (what’s a junior dictionary? why not just have a regular dictionary and use it as needed? what’s the point of having a special dictionary that won’t have the words that you don’t know what they mean?) that’s part of a sinister plot to get rid of words about Christianity and the queen and flowers so that there won’t be any more Britishness. Something like that.

Oxford University Press has removed words like “aisle”, “bishop”, “chapel”, “empire” and “monarch” from its Junior Dictionary and replaced them with words like “blog”, “broadband” and “celebrity”. Dozens of words related to the countryside have also been culled.

Really? How does Julie Henry know that … Read the rest



The clouds part

Dec 9th, 2008 11:38 am | By

There’s this Australian MP who can really spot a sinister coincidence and then having spotted it figure out that it’s not a coincidence at all but a joined-up sequence of events with one (after a gap of six months) causing the other. If only more people had talents like that, All would be Explained.

Labor MP James Bidgood, the first-time MP under investigation for selling pictures of a protester attempting to set fire to himself outside Parliament House, has declared the global financial crisis an act of God…”In 1987 there was another march for Jesus. That took place in April. And guess what happened in October 1987? The stock market crashed.”

Oooooooooooooh – I never noticed that before. Makes you … Read the rest



Vatican Demonstrates its Own Regressive Nature *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

By opposing UN resolution aimed at stopping the execution of gay people in Islamic countries.… Read the rest



British Lawyers Try to Free Dr Humayra Abedin *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

Lawyer Anne-Marie Hutchinson said Monday she is trying to free Abedin; family has ignored court order.… Read the rest



Two More ZPP Officers Abducted *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

Zimbabwe’s human rights abuses continue as two officers of the Zimbabwe Peace Project are grabbed.… Read the rest



Relatives Hold Vigil for Jestina Mukoko *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

Last week Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights filed a High Court application to force the police to produce her.… Read the rest



Grayling on the Hard Truth About Animal Research *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

As knowledge increases, so do doubts about the ethics of using any mammal for research.… Read the rest



Adam Phillips on ‘The House of Wittgenstein’ *

Dec 8th, 2008 | Filed by

Philosophers must not become mandarin philosopher-kings, but stick to the ruthless curiosity of childhood.… Read the rest