All entries by this author

Adios freedom of speech

Aug 5th, 2008 3:02 pm | By

Well at least someone is paying attention.

Pakistan and the other nations that have banded together in the Organization of the Islamic Conference have been leading a remarkably successful campaign through the United Nations to enshrine in international law prohibitions against “defamation of religions,” particularly Islam. Their aim is to empower governments around the world to punish anyone who commits the “heinous act” of defaming Islam. Critics say it is an attempt to globalize laws against blasphemy that exist in some Muslim countries — and that the movement has already succeeded in suppressing open discussion in international forums of issues such as female genital mutilation, honour killings and gay rights.

Quite. David Littman is one of those critics. … Read the rest



More on ‘Defamation of Religion’ *

Aug 5th, 2008 | Filed by

With the kind of global blasphemy laws in this resolution, anybody could sue for hurt feelings. … Read the rest



Southall Black Sisters Won Its Challenge *

Aug 5th, 2008 | Filed by

‘Secular spaces are literally being squeezed out of minority communities.’… Read the rest



Using the UN to Stifle Free Speech *

Aug 5th, 2008 | Filed by

OIC aims to empower governments around the world to punish anyone who ‘defames’ Islam.… Read the rest



Rosie Bell on the LRB and Verso’s List *

Aug 5th, 2008 | Filed by

Voice of Hezbollah; The Statements of Osama Bin Laden; The Holocaust Industry.… Read the rest



Iran Suspends Execution by Stoning *

Aug 5th, 2008 | Filed by

The stones used must be big enough to cause pain, but not to kill immediately. … Read the rest



They meant no harm, they’re just a little highspirited

Aug 4th, 2008 5:48 pm | By

‘Animal rights activists’ apparently firebombed a house where a biologist lives with his family at dawn on Saturday.

Feldheim, whose townhouse was firebombed just after 5:30 a.m., uses mice in laboratory research on brain formation. He told The Chronicle that he and his wife, along with their 7-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter, had to drop a ladder from the window of a second-floor bedroom to escape after smoke filled the home’s first floor.

So…they could easily have been killed or seriously injured. Rather a rough form of ‘activism’ then.

In January, a Molotov cocktail exploded on a UCLA researcher’s porch. A month later, six people in masks tried to force their way into the home of a UC Santa Cruz

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More on Santa Cruz Firebombing *

Aug 4th, 2008 | Filed by

The attacks on researchers have been escalating.… Read the rest



Firebombs Target Santa Cruz Biologists *

Aug 4th, 2008 | Filed by

Jerry Vlasak said, idiotically, ‘the bombers likely were not trying to hurt’ the researcher whose house they hit.… Read the rest



Mark Bauerlein on 42 Years of ‘Theory’ *

Aug 4th, 2008 | Filed by

The putative need to be theory-savvy was harmful to the humanities.… Read the rest



Efforts to End Child Marriage in Yemen *

Aug 4th, 2008 | Filed by

Religious ‘leaders’ oppose legal minimum marriage age, saying it would contradict Islamic precepts.… Read the rest



Secularism and Equality *

Aug 4th, 2008 | Filed by

Special exemptions for religion are the opposite of equality before the law.… Read the rest



Part-time Evangelist Charged With Wife’s Murder *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

Body of mother of 8 kept in freezer for four years, ‘Rev’ also accused of rape and incest.… Read the rest



Chief Justice Dissents in Texas Exorcism Ruling *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

‘This sweeping immunity extends far beyond the protections our Constitution affords religious conduct.’… Read the rest



India: At Least 120 Killed in Temple Stampede *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

There have been at least three fatal stampedes in the country so far this year.… Read the rest



Daniel Dennett Autobiography Part One *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

A pleasant surprise that not all the delicious thoughts of my childhood had to be kept private.… Read the rest



Free Exercise Clause Protects ‘Exorcism’ *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

Texas Supreme Court ruled it would be unconstitutional for court to get involved.… Read the rest



Whether Citizens Have a Right not to be Offended *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

‘Denmark protects its cartoonists. We arrest them.’… Read the rest



Cognitive Science Meets Moral Philosophy *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

When subjects form deontological judgments, emotional processes override controlled cognitive processes.… Read the rest



Workers’ ‘Religious Freedom’ v Patients’ Rights *

Aug 3rd, 2008 | Filed by

Bush administration proposal aims to protect health-care workers who object to abortion.… Read the rest