The first study of its kind following the lives of 140 girls in nine developing countries until 2015.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Du’a’s Murder Inspires Other Murderers 
May 27th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Since Du’a’s murder, at least 12 women have been murdered in the name of ‘honour’ in Iraqi Kurdistan.… Read the rest
Moscow Gay Rights Demo Assaulted
May 27th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Right-wing and Orthodox thugs attacked demonstrators. Police busted gays, left attackers alone.… Read the rest
What’s Entertainment?
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Beach novels? Hmm. High school humiliations, Canadian comedies, cultural commentary?… Read the rest
Newsflash: Humanist Rags on Atheists
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Vehement, strident, fundamentalist, dogmatic, negative, Greg Epstein.… Read the rest
Mo Rejoices at Iran’s Technological Prowess
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
A convincing rebuttal to those who say the Islamic world has been technologically moribund for centuries.… Read the rest
Tom Flynn on Addiction to the Big M
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Is it frightening to think there is no Meaning in life, only the plural meanings we create for ourselves?… Read the rest
Vernon Interviews Daniel Dennett
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘The philosophers I pay attention to are all, in one way or another, paying close professional attention to other disciplines.’… Read the rest
Another Think Coming
May 26th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘The salty question of how we should live seems to have given way to the dry matter of what we think.’… Read the rest
Steal From The Simpsons, not Henry James
May 25th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
What is wrong with the modern literary novel? ‘Why is it so anxious? Why is it so bloody boring?’… Read the rest
The Traveler’s Dilemma
May 25th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
When playing this game, people reject the rational choice; by acting illogically, they reap a larger reward.… Read the rest
Martha Nussbaum on the Gujarat Massacre
May 25th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
What has been happening in India is a serious threat to the future of democracy in the world.… Read the rest
Frank Furedi on the Misery Memoir Market
May 25th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The reader is not left with a feeling of inspiration, but rather with an urge to take a shower. … Read the rest
BBC Prepares Reply to Complaints in Advance
May 25th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Dear Blank, I’m sorry if you believe the programme lacked the hard evidence you wanted to see.… Read the rest
Is RE Education or Evangelism?
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Parents are alarmed at the increasingly evangelical nature of RE in some schools. … Read the rest
CPJ Special Report on Anna Politkovskaya
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Novaya’s coverage of social and political issues has won it devoted readers and passionate enemies.… Read the rest
Creation ‘Museum’ ‘Challenging’ Science
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘A new museum in Northern Kentucky promotes a religious perspective on geology.’… Read the rest
Eve, Adam, and Dinosaurs Together at Last
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Fossils, the museum ‘teaches,’ are no older than ‘Noah’s flood’; in fact dinosaurs were on ‘the ark.’… Read the rest
The Theist Fandango
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Redefine god as anything and everything, then wonder how atheists can fail to have ‘faith.’… Read the rest
Isaacson Keeps Repeating Einstein’s Wife Error
May 24th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘She served as a sounding board for his scientific ideas and helped to check the math in his papers.’… Read the rest
