Anderson Shadreck Manyere was denied bail despite allegations that he was tortured in police detention.… Read the rest
All entries by this author
The Mess in Zimbabwe 
Jan 18th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Trillion-dollar notes; 80% unemployment; cholera. Tsvangirai appeals for release of Mukoko.… Read the rest
Jestina Mukoko’s Affidavit [pdf]
Jan 18th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The punishment for heading a human rights organization.… Read the rest
Opponents of Mugabe Tell Court of Torture
Jan 18th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Jestina Mukoko was forced to kneel on gravel for hours; she wept on the stand as she recounted her ordeal.… Read the rest
John Holbo Revisits ‘Theory’
Jan 18th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Many literary scholars feel obscurely obliged to find Theory to be, somehow, necessary.… Read the rest
Rocks, Hard Places and Jesus Fatigue
Jan 18th, 2009 | By R. Joseph HoffmannThe following comments are not a direct response to Bruce Chilton’s very helpful article on the Jesus Project but in many ways anticipate and respond to some of his observations. I offer it as further commentary on the pros and cons of undertaking yet another “quest,” at a time when New Testament scholarship, in the eyes of some, is a mission without a guiding purpose. JH
Crouching somewhere between aesthetic sound byte and historical detail is Michelangelo’s famous statement about sculpture. “The job of the sculptor,” Vasari attributes to il Divino, “is to set free the forms that are within the stone.” It’s a lovely thought—poetic, in fact. If you accept the theory of Renaissance Platonism, as Michelangelo embodies … Read the rest
Rick Warren creepeth upon his belly
Jan 17th, 2009 12:04 pm | By Ophelia BensonWendy Kaminer has some thoughts on ‘vain and unctuous right-wing pastor Rick Warren’ (what an elegant way of putting it).
Obama justified appointing Warren as his inaugural invocator-in-chief as a gesture of inclusiveness. Warren’s own notion of inclusion has its limits, considering his belief that millions of his heretical fellow citizens are going to hell.
Quite, and that’s certainly one reason I find the man rebarbative.
[D]espite Warren’s extreme social and religious conservatism – reflected in his denouncement of stem cell research, reproductive choice and homosexuality, and his belief that only good Christians are bound for glory…- he is widely regarded as a moderate evangelical by the mainstream press and centrist intellectuals.
And that’s the problem – he defines rabid … Read the rest
Women Flee the Taliban in NWFP
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The bullet-riddled body sent a message: ‘un-Islamic vices’ will not be tolerated.… Read the rest
Andrew Brown Scolds the Atheists Again
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Christian ‘fire and brimstone’ messages on buses are fine, atheist ‘don’t worry’ is so very tiresome.… Read the rest
Another Protest About the Atheist Bus Campaign
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It just gets funnier.… Read the rest
Hunger and Genetically Modified Organisms
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
A scientist and an MP clashed over whether Kenya should adopt GM crops to counter the rising food shortage.… Read the rest
Wendy Kaminer Does Not Love Rick Warren
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Warren is like a benevolent deity, who loves us all, despite our sins and failings.… Read the rest
Israel Disqualifies Two Arab Parties from Elections
Jan 17th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Regulations prohibit parties that oppose ‘the existence of the State of Israel as a Jewish, democratic state.’… Read the rest
CFI London: Weird Science January 17
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Ben Goldacre, Richard Wiseman, Chris French and Stephen Law.… Read the rest
Driver Refuses to Drive Bus With ‘No God’ Sign
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
His first reaction was shock horror.… Read the rest
Somali Politician Executed for ‘Apostasy’
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Islamist militia accused him of betraying his religion by working with non-Muslim Ethiopian forces. … Read the rest
Sri Lankan Journalist Expected His Own Murder
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Lasantha Wickrematunge wrote a column in anticipation of his murder, warning of the threat to democracy.… Read the rest
Acid-scarred Afghan Girls Return to School
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘The people who did this to me don’t want women to be educated. They want us to be stupid things.’… Read the rest
Is it Wrong to Notice When AIDS Denialists Die?
Jan 16th, 2009 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Especially AIDS denialists who go to South Africa to promote denialism there?… Read the rest
Girls are things
Jan 15th, 2009 12:07 pm | By Ophelia BensonReligious bastards are not limited to the Vatican, of course.
… Read the restSaudi Arabia’s most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they’re too young are doing the girls an injustice. “It is wrong to say it’s not permitted to marry off girls who are 15 and younger,” Sheik Abdul-Aziz Al Sheikh, the country’s grand mufti, was quoted as saying. “A female who is 10 or 12 is marriageable and those who think she’s too young are wrong and are being unfair to her,” he said…”We hear a lot about the marriage of underage girls in the media, and we should know that Islamic law has not brought injustice
