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Inevitably links go out of date.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.


Labour suspends “Lord” Ahmed *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

For cause.… Read the rest



Medicine and its rivals *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

The future for the alternative-therapy industry looks particularly bright in America. NCCAM continues to pay for research.… Read the rest



Saskatoon Catholic church looking for trained exorcist *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

A spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Toronto told the Toronto Star that every diocese is supposed to have a priest trained to perform exorcisms. Toronto has two.… Read the rest



Vending machines for “traditional Chinese medicine” *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

Take “mysterious ingredients,” steep them for hours, then dispense them “accurately” via a vending machine. Instant cure!… Read the rest



PZ’s talk at GAC: Sacking the City of God *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

So how do you kill an idea? How will we sack the city of faith? By coming up with a better, more powerful idea. That’s the only way we can win.… Read the rest



London Met v-c urged to apologise for alcohol comments *

Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by

Claire Locke, president of the Student Union, said Malcolm Gillies had “offended” Muslim students by generalising about their beliefs.… Read the rest



Belarus: Andrei Sannikov released from prison *

Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by

Sannikov, the founder of the Charter 97 pro-democracy group, had been held since the crackdown on opposition in Europe’s last dictatorship in December 2010.… Read the rest



Group of Catholics say Desmond Tutu isn’t good enough *

Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by

Tutu supports contraception and the ordination of gay clergy, therefore he shouldn’t get an honorary degree from Gonzaga University.… Read the rest



Indian Catholic church gets skeptic arrested for “blasphemy” *

Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by

Sanal Edamaruku revealed that a “miraculous” weeping cross was really just a bit of statuary near a leaky drain whose liquid reached it by way of capillary action.… Read the rest



Ex-archbish Carey demands more theocracy *

Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by

“It is now Christians who are persecuted; often sought out and framed by homosexual activists,” he says. Disgusting thug.… Read the rest



Niqab, bra, photo, censorship, controversy, confusion *

Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by

Veiled women wear underwear too! Or something.… Read the rest



Germany: daughters flee families to have their own lives *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

They don’t want to conform to the traditional values of the regions where their families come from. Instead, they want to live free, independent and emancipated.… Read the rest



No “gay cure” ads for London buses *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

The posters, backed by Anglican Mainstream, read: “Not gay! Post-gay, ex-gay and proud. Get over it!”… Read the rest



The Titanic sank to make a point *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

No event in history has done more to remind Western culture of the Christian doctrine of “women and children first.”… Read the rest



Patriarchalists celebrate Titanic 100th *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

In biblical patriarchy, the refrain of “women and children first” hides an agenda whereby the women are “first” only insofar as they keep their place – subordinate to men.… Read the rest



Salafists in Germany *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

A video appeared on YouTube apparently threatening journalists who reported critically on the Salafist Koran distribution project.… Read the rest



US bishops vow disobedience to “unjust laws” *

Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by

USCCB statement expresses disdain for court rulings against the bishops and pledges to deploy “all the energies the Catholic community can muster” to resist “totalitarian incursions.”… Read the rest



Catholic bish says without Xianity you get Stalin/Hitler *

Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by

Telegraph nods solemnly in agreement.… Read the rest



Santorum and the politics of the very big family *

Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by

In this election, and the birth control debate that is a significant part of its soundtrack, the convictions of the Quiverfull community seem to have made a mainstream debut.… Read the rest



Sarah Posner on the Santorum legacy *

Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by

At his press conference today, Santorum praised the family as “the moral enterprise that is America,” and thanked the 19 Kids and Counting Duggars for campaigning for him.… Read the rest