For cause.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Medicine and its rivals
Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonThe future for the alternative-therapy industry looks particularly bright in America. NCCAM continues to pay for research.… Read the rest
Saskatoon Catholic church looking for trained exorcist
Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonA spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Toronto told the Toronto Star that every diocese is supposed to have a priest trained to perform exorcisms. Toronto has two.… Read the rest
Vending machines for “traditional Chinese medicine”
Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonTake “mysterious ingredients,” steep them for hours, then dispense them “accurately” via a vending machine. Instant cure!… Read the rest
PZ’s talk at GAC: Sacking the City of God
Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonSo how do you kill an idea? How will we sack the city of faith? By coming up with a better, more powerful idea. That’s the only way we can win.… Read the rest
London Met v-c urged to apologise for alcohol comments
Apr 15th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonClaire Locke, president of the Student Union, said Malcolm Gillies had “offended” Muslim students by generalising about their beliefs.… Read the rest
Belarus: Andrei Sannikov released from prison
Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonSannikov, the founder of the Charter 97 pro-democracy group, had been held since the crackdown on opposition in Europe’s last dictatorship in December 2010.… Read the rest
Group of Catholics say Desmond Tutu isn’t good enough
Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonTutu supports contraception and the ordination of gay clergy, therefore he shouldn’t get an honorary degree from Gonzaga University.… Read the rest
Indian Catholic church gets skeptic arrested for “blasphemy”
Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonSanal Edamaruku revealed that a “miraculous” weeping cross was really just a bit of statuary near a leaky drain whose liquid reached it by way of capillary action.… Read the rest
Ex-archbish Carey demands more theocracy
Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia Benson“It is now Christians who are persecuted; often sought out and framed by homosexual activists,” he says. Disgusting thug.… Read the rest
Niqab, bra, photo, censorship, controversy, confusion
Apr 14th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonVeiled women wear underwear too! Or something.… Read the rest
Germany: daughters flee families to have their own lives
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonThey don’t want to conform to the traditional values of the regions where their families come from. Instead, they want to live free, independent and emancipated.… Read the rest
No “gay cure” ads for London buses
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonThe posters, backed by Anglican Mainstream, read: “Not gay! Post-gay, ex-gay and proud. Get over it!”… Read the rest
The Titanic sank to make a point
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonNo event in history has done more to remind Western culture of the Christian doctrine of “women and children first.”… Read the rest
Patriarchalists celebrate Titanic 100th
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonIn biblical patriarchy, the refrain of “women and children first” hides an agenda whereby the women are “first” only insofar as they keep their place – subordinate to men.… Read the rest
Salafists in Germany
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonA video appeared on YouTube apparently threatening journalists who reported critically on the Salafist Koran distribution project.… Read the rest
US bishops vow disobedience to “unjust laws”
Apr 12th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonUSCCB statement expresses disdain for court rulings against the bishops and pledges to deploy “all the energies the Catholic community can muster” to resist “totalitarian incursions.”… Read the rest
Catholic bish says without Xianity you get Stalin/Hitler
Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonTelegraph nods solemnly in agreement.… Read the rest
Santorum and the politics of the very big family
Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonIn this election, and the birth control debate that is a significant part of its soundtrack, the convictions of the Quiverfull community seem to have made a mainstream debut.… Read the rest
Sarah Posner on the Santorum legacy
Apr 11th, 2012 | Filed by Ophelia BensonAt his press conference today, Santorum praised the family as “the moral enterprise that is America,” and thanked the 19 Kids and Counting Duggars for campaigning for him.… Read the rest