“Beyond the Hoax” is an essential text for anyone interested in the history and philosophy of science.… Read the rest
All entries by this author
Mbeki Says Riots are a Disgrace 
May 25th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Said the attacks were the worst acts of inhumanity South Africa had seen since Apartheid. … Read the rest
Austin Dacey Rejects the Gag Order on Ethics
May 25th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
By shying away from fundamental moral debate, secular liberalism has abandoned the field to religious voices. … Read the rest
Self-styled Atheist Cheers On Catholic Bishops
May 25th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘What other religion is taking on the scourge of militant secularism afflicting modern Europe?’… Read the rest
Bill Sneaks Religion Into Science Class
May 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Louisiana Senate Bill 733 lets public school teachers use supplementary materials when teaching about evolution. … Read the rest
Please Not the Old ‘Community Leaders’ Drivel
May 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Top cop had to ‘build links’ with the ‘diverse’ community he policed; that meant meeting community leaders, e.g. Scientologists.… Read the rest
Prisoner Boasts of Plan to Prison Officer
May 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘I am planning to bomb Bluewater shopping centre in Exeter.’ ‘It’s in Kent.’ ‘The plan is not finalised yet.’… Read the rest
Liberty Considering Action Against Police
May 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The City of London Police tried to prosecute a protester for calling Scientology a ‘cult.’… Read the rest
The Damage Has Still Been Done
May 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Even minor actions by the police can have a chilling effect on the right to protest.… Read the rest
A common objective?
May 24th, 2008 11:05 am | By Ophelia BensonTom Clark argues with the theologian John Haught. He starts out with some common ground – or perhaps not.
As much as their worldviews differ, both naturalists and anti-naturalists share a common objective: getting the nature of reality right according to their best lights.
I don’t really think that’s true – at least not of anti-naturalists of the type discussed in the article. I thought that as soon as I read it, then as I read the rest of the article I found places where Clark makes points that are (at least) in tension with it. It seemed to me as soon as I read it, and then thought about it, that anti-naturalists are motivated in their anti-naturalism by … Read the rest
HRW on Crisis for Gay Rights in Turkey
May 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Necessary to defend all people’s basic rights against the dictatorship of custom.… Read the rest
Baggini on Secular and Sacred Values
May 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
When it comes to specific matters of morality, the idea that religious convictions need respect, not interrogation and defence, is absurd.… Read the rest
Some New Members of HRC are Rights Abusers
May 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Human Rights Council has not found time to inquire into Burma’s unabashed denial of food to its own population.… Read the rest
Nour Miyati Denied Justice for Torture
May 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
HRW reports all charges were dropped against Saudi employer who abused Indonesian servant.… Read the rest
Saudi Police Arrest Rights Activist at University
May 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Matrook al-Faleh arrested after he criticized conditions in a prison where other rights activists are stuck. … Read the rest
The Compleat Sceptic: Of Fathers and Dissident Daughters
May 23rd, 2008 | By R Joseph HoffmannAs mesmerized television viewers know, America is beset with vapid discussions of the faith of their future president masquerading as “compassion forums.” In the April 12 CNN version of what may become a permanent feature of American political showmanship, candidates were challenged to describe whether they have ever felt the Holy Spirit move within them and whether, in their best judgment, God wanted him, or her, to be president.
No, this was not a BBC satire. It is American Realpolitik. The questions were deadly earnest, exceeded in absurdity only by the feigned seriousness with which the combatants stumbled through their rehearsed platitudes. Neither contender was asked the unfashionable empirical question that used to dominate discussion: Would you push a red … Read the rest
Goodness, what’s the rush?
May 22nd, 2008 5:27 pm | By Ophelia BensonA Texas appeals court rules that the state CPS acted too hastily in removing all the children from the FLDS ranch.
… Read the restIn the decision, the 3rd Court ruled that CPS failed to provide any evidence that the children were in imminent danger. It said state acted hastily in removing them from their families. The agency had argued that the children on the ranch were either abused or at risk of abuse. The Texas Family Code allows a judge to consider whether the “household” to which a child would be returned includes a person who has sexually abused another child. Child welfare officials alleged that the polygamist sect’s practice of marrying underage girls to older men places all its children at
Khadim Hussain: the Fate of Swat [scroll down]
May 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
An overwhelming majority of people never supported the clergy in their quest for influence in the valley. … Read the rest
A Pervasive Pattern of Sexual Abuse
May 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘When we see evidence that children have been sexually abused and remain at risk of further abuse, we will act.’… Read the rest
Texas Court of Appeals, Third District, Austin
May 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The Relators’ Petition for Writ of Mandamus is conditionally granted.… Read the rest
