How tidy and how regular were the processes that led to the emergence of the largest empire in history?
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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
-
Niall Ferguson Disputes Amartya Sen
‘Throughout Empire, I make it clear that I am on the side of Adam Smith, not Robert Clive.’
-
Sen Replies to Ferguson
Puzzling that the history of British imperial rule after the mid-19th century appears so ‘benign’ to Ferguson.
-
Conservatives are not Attracted to Academe
‘The personal priorities of those on the left are more compatible with pursuing a Ph.D.’
-
Julian Baggini on Žižek on Violence
Whatever the received wisdom is, Žižek postulates the opposite. And repeat.
-
Hitchens on Anti-Semitism
Garden-variety racists seldom suspect the objects of their dislike of harboring a demonic plan for world domination.
-
Cartoonist Kurt Westergaard is Homeless
Left home because of death threat, kicked out of hotel because of security concerns.
-
Flemming Rose Talks to Spiegel Online
This is a global struggle for the right to free speech; people are trying to intimidate and silence critics of religion.
-
Nigeria: Sharia Commissioner v HRW
Urges Federal Government: always seek the opinion of leaders of all religions before signing international agreements.
-
Cardinal Tells Catholic Hospital What To Do
Cardinal intervened after quarrels over ethical code banning abortions and contraception.
-
Jesus Finds Reformed Epistemology
God has given us a sensus divinitatus: a reliable belief-forming mechanism. Handy!
-
UN: Free Speech Should Respect Religion
‘Freedom of expression should be exercised responsibly and in a way that respects all religious beliefs.’
-
Yale Sex Week Glosses Over the Reality of Porn
Yale is accepting the media-generated sugar-coated image of the porn industry as glamorous, fun and cool.
-
Specialist Refuges for Women Are at Risk
One organisation under threat is Southall Black Sisters; Ealing council plans to take away its core funding.
-
Archbish Says Sharia Can be Appalling
But he repeated his assertion that it is ‘rooted in the sense of doing God’s will in the ordinary things of life.’
-
Scientific Study of Religious Belief Launched
Oxford researchers have received a £1.9 million grant for study of the cognitive science of religion.
-
Polkinghorne on Science and Religion
‘One of the most persuasive and liberating understanding is that it is the divine mind that lies behind the world.’
-
Southall Black Sisters Threatened with Closure
Ealing Council has decided there is no longer a need for specialist services for minority women.
-
Parvin Ardalan Wins Olof Palme Prize
Iranian women’s rights activists in Iran and abroad are celebrating.
-
Tina Beattie on the Archbishop
ABC wants to open up a conversation between the insights of postmodern philosophy and lawyers.