Tuscan retreat’s therapeutic wellness programme includes detoxifying powder to cleanse the body and painful toxin-eliminating Marma massage.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Thailand: woo goes modern 
Jan 1st, 2011 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
“Spirit houses” are now being built with modern construction materials like ceramics, glass and granite panels.… Read the rest
Pakistan: mullahs on strike against “blasphemy” reform
Dec 31st, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of “insulting Islam” faces the death penalty.… Read the rest
Israel: some question benefits for Torah study
Dec 31st, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
More than 60% of haredi men don’t work, ditto more than 50% of haredi women. Other Israelis are getting restive.… Read the rest
Remembering Denis Dutton
Dec 30th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The lesson on display every day at ALD is that one can be precise and brisk, and nuanced and weird, at the same time.… Read the rest
Women are trafficked into marriage in India
Dec 30th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Shafiqur Rahman Khan is a gender rights activist and columnist; his organization helps rescue trafficked women.… Read the rest
Dickens’s Xmas Carol is his protest against Xmas
Dec 30th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Eric MacDonald does a close reading.… Read the rest
Apathy about human rights is deadly
Dec 30th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Lauryn Oates points out that tyrannies are just as lethal and sorrowful as earthquakes and tornadoes.… Read the rest
Ashtiani’s fate is still unclear
Dec 30th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Her lawyer has been forced out of the country.… Read the rest
Most influential female atheist of 2010 poll
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Second annual blaghag poll. It is an Honor Just to be Nominated. It’s an honor to get ten votes, too, chiz chiz.… Read the rest
There’s plenty of time for evolution
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Jerry Coyne on a new paper that shows mathematically that simultaneous substitution is much much faster than “serial” substitution.… Read the rest
Celebrities and Science 2010 [pdf]
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Detox, the Master Cleanse, magnets, Power Balance bracelets, charcoal.… Read the rest
Five suspected Islamist militants arrested
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The four held in Denmark planned to enter the building housing the Jyllands-Posten and “kill as many of the people present as possible”.… Read the rest
Police arrest 5 in plot against Jyllands-Posten
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The Danish newspaper and those connected with the publication of the Muhammed cartoons have been regular targets of violence.… Read the rest
Katha Pollitt’s hero of 2010: Shirley Sherrod
Dec 29th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
What does it say about the US that a hack like Breitbart can destroy a decades-long career in one day?… Read the rest
Katha Pollitt on Julian Assange
Dec 28th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The furor over the rape allegations against Julian Assange reveal that when it comes to rape, the left still doesn’t get it.… Read the rest
US Conference of Catholic Bishops backs Olmsted
Dec 28th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Nothing can justify a direct abortion. No circumstance whatsoever can ever make licit an act which is intrinsically illicit, since it is contrary to the Law of God.… Read the rest
“Catholic hospitals fight to stay pro-life”
Dec 28th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Pro-life? A policy that would let both a woman and a fetus die when the woman could be saved?… Read the rest
Jesus and Mo on obviously intelligent design
Dec 28th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
God created a perfect environment for humans; the banana proves it.… Read the rest
