Isn’t Australian religiosity rather unobtrusive and undemanding? Actually, no.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Russell Blackford on The state, religion and the need for rational scrutiny 
Dec 23rd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
David Barash says no thanks to NOMA
Dec 23rd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Science and religion overlap whenever religion makes truth claims about the world. When that happens, religion has a long track record of being wrong.… Read the rest
Children publish bee study in Royal Society journal
Dec 23rd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Children from Blackawton Primary School found that bumblebees can learn which flowers to forage from with more flexibility than anyone had thought.… Read the rest
Ben Goldacre offers the year in nonsense
Dec 23rd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It’s been a marvellous year for bullshit.… Read the rest
Greta Christina on atheistophobia
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Atheists are called offensive, intolerant, disrespectful, extremist, hostile, confrontational and generally horrible, just for existing.… Read the rest
Catholic church to expel hospital over abortion
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The Catholic church insists that a “Catholic” hospital must let a woman die rather than end her pregnancy.… Read the rest
Vatican clarifies condom policy
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Condoms may not be used to avoid an unwanted pregnancy. No no no no no no. Women must get pregnant whether they want to or not.… Read the rest
Ratzinger blames everyone else again
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Says society considers child porn “normal.” Survivors of priestly child-rape react with fury.… Read the rest
Daryl Bem replies to a skeptical critic
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
James Alcock critiqued Bem’s article “Feeling the Future: Experimental Evidence for Anomalous Retroactive Influences on Cognition and Affect.”… Read the rest
Nick Cohen on the hounding of M F Husain
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
India’s censorship laws have allowed extremist Hindus to compete with extremist Muslims in tit-for-tat censorship campaigns.… Read the rest
Fistula
Dec 21st, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
One frequent outcome of very early marriage for girls.… Read the rest
Jesus suits up for the war on Christmas
Dec 21st, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
“We must arm ourselves against the secularists, the nihilists, the humanists, and the liberals.”… Read the rest
My review of Karen Armstrong’s new book
Dec 21st, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
In the New Humanist.… Read the rest
Richard Holloway reviews Karen Armstrong
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
“Is she correct in suggesting that, au fond, the essence of the main religions boils down to compassion?” No.… Read the rest
Barbara Forrest offers a Kitzmas present
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It’s the anniversary of the Dover decision, so here is this year’s testimony from 15 citizens of Louisiana who spoke up for science, and won.… Read the rest
Bangladesh: woman dies after caning
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
She was taken to a hospital with severe injuries a week after the beating, and died a month later.… Read the rest
Ireland: two bishops have questions to answer
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Was it really an accident that documents concerning allegations of abuse against 10 priests were not passed to the Ferns inquiry?… Read the rest
Abortion worse than al-Qaeda, says dim Royal
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Nicholas Windsor calls abortion “the single most grievous moral deficit in contemporary life.”… Read the rest
Theism is mandatory in Indonesia
Dec 20th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Its constitution says that “the state shall be based upon belief in the one, supreme God.”… Read the rest
George Packer reviews George Bush’s memoir
Dec 19th, 2010 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
For Bush, making decisions is an identity question: Who am I?… Read the rest
