The idea is not a principle of logic, but instead could be called a principle of beneficence.
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Inevitably links go out of date.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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Johann Hari’s Not Okay, You’re Not Okay
His friends have begun to offer him inspirational, upbeat psychobabble.
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Hitchens on Babyish Tantrums
‘Faith belongs to the spoiled and selfish childhood of our species.’
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White House Tells NASA What to Say
For instance, to add the word ‘theory’ after every mention of the Big Bang.
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NASA Admin’s Statement on Scientific Openness
‘It is not the job of public affairs officers to alter, filter or adjust engineering or scientific material produced by NASA’s technical staff.’
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Bad Astronomy Takes Issue With George Deutsch
Young party hack orders NASA to teach religion – what’s the problem?
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Jordanian Editors Arrested for Insulting Religion
‘Muslims of the world be reasonable,’ wrote Mr Momani, so no wonder he got busted.
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Munira Mirza Says Muslims Want Freedom Too
Censorship in the West bolsters the moral authority of leaders in the Middle East to censor their own citizens.
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A-Level Maths Dumbed Down?
Many teachers think so; others think A-Levels help all students to succeed. At what?
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Embassies Burn in Damascus as Tantrums Continue
Vatican says right to freedom of expression does not imply right to offend religious beliefs.
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No One Knows What the Prophet Looked Like
No one could seriously claim to recognise the Prophet in images drawn by Danish cartoonists.
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World Press Reaction
One thing to assert the right to publish, another thing to put that right to the test. Oh.
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The Guardian Takes a Stand
Against teasing ‘the founder of one of the world’s three great monotheistic religions.’
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Ibn Warraq Urges Solidarity With the Cartoonists
Unashamed, noisy, public solidarity, lest the forces trying to impose a totalitarian ideology win.
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Having a Thin Skin Can Be Used as a Weapon
It allows people to create their own definition of respect and require us to observe it.
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Petition to Defend Free Speech and Secularism
Condemn threats and violence as a way to silence criticism and satire.
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Agnès Callamard of Article 19 on Prophetic Fallacy
One striking feature of these events is the remarkable absence of sensible dialogue.
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Sign and Sight Gives Useful Overview
A survey of the European press on the cartoons.
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Jyllands-Posten Editor Says it was Worth It
‘We wanted to show how deeply entrenched self-censorship has already become.’
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Richard Wolin on Levinas and Heidegger
By rejecting reason, Heidegger severed the pivotal link between insight and emancipation.
