Its importance is not merely instrumental.… Read the rest
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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Philosophy is not Just Self-Help 
Aug 29th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
But the promotion for Penguin’s Great Ideas series might make one think otherwise.… Read the rest
Dogmatic Commitment to Instrumentalism
Aug 29th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
If knowledge is not an intrinsic good, then any ‘knowledge’ will do.… Read the rest
David Cesarani’s Biography of Eichmann
Aug 28th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Scrupulously objective; the hatchet-job is reserved for Hannah Arendt.… Read the rest
Eichmann, Everyman as Genocidaire
Aug 28th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It seemed the right thing to do at the time.… Read the rest
David Lodge’s Henry James Novel
Aug 28th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It’s about writing novels rather than sexual secrets.… Read the rest
Work of Art Thrown in Bin and Badly Damaged
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Tragedy at Tate when cleaner throws away bin liner filled with waste paper.… Read the rest
Hey, it’s Popular
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘Music is very important to black people,’ so if it advocates killing gays – er – shut up?… Read the rest
Outrage at Harker on OutRage
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Music is important to black people, and not being beaten to death is important to gay people.… Read the rest
Free Speech Shouldn’t Cover Death Threats
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Blunkett was right to ban animal rights ‘activist.’… Read the rest
Excluded
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Blunkett bans animal rights campaigner Jerry Vlasak.… Read the rest
Common Sense Good, Political Correctness Bad
Aug 27th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
And the difference is entirely self-evident. Right.… Read the rest
From Multiculturalism to Where?
Aug 26th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The city on a hill where everyone celebrates differences isn’t working out.… Read the rest
‘A Good Book Should Make You Cry’?
Aug 26th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The lachrymose world of the problem novel for children.… Read the rest
Margaret Talbot on Munchausen’s by Proxy
Aug 26th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Naming a syndrome can create it, and when is a crime a ‘disorder’?… Read the rest
Outrage! Plan Mobo Protest
Aug 25th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Gay rights group to pressure the BBC not to broadcast the music of black artists who promote homophobia.… Read the rest
Salim Mansur on Selective Outrage
Aug 25th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The victims are black and non-Arab; the victimizers are of Arab origin. … Read the rest
Convicted Murderer Flees Extradition
Aug 25th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Chooses ‘green of life’ over ‘grey of legal punishment’. For himself, that is.… Read the rest
Interview with Habermas
Aug 24th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
What separates him from Derrida is the later Heidegger.… Read the rest
Adam and Eve and Steve and Bill and Sal and
Aug 24th, 2004 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
What do nature and tradition really say about the meaning of marriage?… Read the rest
