‘Sen is exquisitely civilised in his disagreements with other thinkers, even while he is elegantly trashing whole schools of economic and social thought.’
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Inevitably links go out of date.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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Lecture on Beheading Infidels Perhaps a Clue
Saying non-Muslims were infidels condemned to hell who should be set on fire perhaps another.
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Rid the World of Female Genital Mutilation
Despite the best efforts of conservative forces, people all over Africa are starting to question the practice.
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Long-dead Cardinal Cures Spinal Injury
US deacon says he was cured of a crippling spinal condition after praying to John Henry Newman.
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Life in Pakistan
‘Terrorists are following us everywhere: in mosques, shopping centres, hotels, restaurants and even educational institutions.’
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Railing at MPs While the City Gets Away With It
If Labour ministers took on the City, they would hear raging voters calling them as bad as the bankers.
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New Zealand Self-made ‘Bishop’ as Daddy
He’s the ‘spiritual father’ and all the male members of the church are his ‘spiritual sons.’
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When Religion is the Opposite of an Opiate
Islamism actively seeks to create a group identity and a sense of grievance, and often succeeds.
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The Right to Access to Quackery
It’s a mistake to try to regulate ‘alternative’ medicine as if it were real medicine.
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Plymouth University Axes Steiner Course
The educational wing of the UK Anthroposophy movement will be deeply hurt.
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Sholto Byrnes Says What Atheists Think
Gets it wrong.
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Normblog on Žižek on Terror
Fighting and terror are not the same thing; in conflating the two Žižek discounts a century of moral and legal progress.
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Magdalene Victims to Sue for Mistreatment
A group are to sue the Irish state, the Catholic Church or both for the decades of mistreatment.
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Are You Offended? You Are Offended, Right?
You must be offended. That was offensive. I would be offended if I were you. Why aren’t you offended?
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Three Books on Honour Killing Reviewed
Jacqueline Rose is worried about ‘giving the West a monopoly on the forward march of history.’
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Peter Tatchell Protests Accusations of Censorship
Academics are supposed to adhere to the highest standards of facts, truth and of evidence-based claims.
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Socialist Unity Struggles with Itself
Marx. Voltaire. Racism. Islamophobia. The LGBT community. Oh what oh what shall we do.
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Russell Blackford and Udo Schuklenk at CisF
In a different world, the merits or otherwise of religious teachings might be discussed more dispassionately.
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UK’s Chief Rabbi Warns Against Secularism
Says civil society needs religion because it sanctifies the family and parenthood.
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ACLU on Buju Banton and Free Speech
Says singing ‘let’s kill women’ or ‘let’s kill gays’ is not a true threat. Really?