Templeton is endeavouring to return human thought to the deeply conflicted state that Newton and Spinoza had to live with.
Category: Latest News
Welcome to our archive of news stories relevant to the project of fighting fashionable nonsense. The stories are drawn from the electronic pages of the world’s media. On this page, you’ll find links to those stories that have been featured on Butterflies and Wheels during the current year. At the bottom of the page, you’ll find links to separate archives of stories from previous years.
We’re always pleased to hear about news stories that you think should be featured on Butterflies and Wheels. Just send an email here, if you want to point one out to us.
A note about links
Inevitably links go out of date. We suggest, therefore, that you make hard-copies of the stories that particularly interest you.
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John Horgan in SciAm on the Templeton prize
The Templeton Foundation promotes a view of science and religion as roughly equivalent.
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Nick Cohen on Templeton and “respect” for religion
In the past, the faithful did not accuse their critics of mere bad manners.
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Michael Ruse on…the new atheists
Yes really. Again.
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Barbara Forrest on a prayer network malfunction?
The Louisiana Coalition for Science says the Louisiana Science Education Act is a creationist law; now a prayer group has slipped up and confirmed that.
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Bill allowing teachers to challenge evolution passes
The Tennessee House of Representatives passed HB 368, a bill that “encourages science teachers to explore controversial topics without fear of reprisal.”
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Their dinner with Sam
Is it possible to think of an example of an act that everyone would consider moral that unquestionably decreases well being?
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Victor Stenger on the contingency of convergence
Purpose remains a major area of conflict between religion and science. Religion claims the universe has a purpose, but no scientific evidence supports this yearning.
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More Guardian “why are atheists so cross?”
Intolerance, stupidity, abuse, abusive, petty, spiteful, militant atheist, professional atheists, take Lady R on a shopping spree, blowhards, arrogant, men of faith.
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Kylie Sturgess talks to Tim Minchin
“Christianity is still around because people have had self interest and have promoted it, the same way you promote Coca-Cola.”
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Templeton is not either an enemy of science
“Unlike Jerry Coyne, I don’t see a bogeymen round every religious corner.” So there nyah.
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Templeton: the Guardian fights back
Tunnel vision, proselytising atheists, metaphors, Newton’s religion, Einstein’s God of sorts, book-promoting blathering of Stephen Hawking, nuance.
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Controversial Templeton prize is controversial
The controversial Templeton Foundation has awarded its controversial prize to an agnostic; that’s controversial.
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Salil Tripathi on banning books
Narendra Modi decided to defend Gujarat’s pride and banned Lelyveld’s biography of Gandhi. He hadn’t read it, but that’s the nature of fundamentalists.
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Lewis Wolpert and Peter Atkins on Templeton prize
“But does all religion necessarily undermine rationality?” “Oh, absolutely.”
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Kadyrov is turning the clock back in Chechnya
Women face coercion to wear hijab as part of a “virtues” campaign, men are allowed polygamous marriage and alcohol is forbidden.
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Ronald de Sousa on the problem with the sacred
A rational mind has room for conviction, commitment, passion, perhaps even for parochialism and bias. But not for the sacred.
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HRW to Libya: allow Eman al-‘Obeidy to leave Tripoli
Al-‘Obeidy says she has tried to leave Tripoli three times since she first told journalists about the rape on March 26, but was stopped by government forces.
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Record number of German Catholics quit church
50,000 more Catholics cancelled their church membership last year than in 2009, an increase of 40 percent.
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Lots of Satanism on the internet
Thus need for lots of exorcists. Jobs for Catholic priests! And in the nick of time, too…