There is a difficulty, which is that no scientific experiment can have any bearing on their hypothesis.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Another Zany Australian Imam 
Jan 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Keen to see children die as martyrs.… Read the rest
Simon Blackburn on Bernard Williams
Jan 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
He believed science had a title to knowledge independent of practitioners’ culture and values.… Read the rest
Moment of Truthiness
Jan 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Colbert satirizes the intellectual and social myopia afflicting the Bush admin and many Americans. … Read the rest
Turkish-Armenian Writer Murdered
Jan 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Newspaper editor Hrant Dink was convicted in 2005 of ‘insulting Turkish identity.’… Read the rest
Obituary: Hrant Dink
Jan 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
One of dozens of writers charged under controversial laws against ‘insulting Turkishness.’… Read the rest
Steven Weinberg Reviews The God Delusion
Jan 18th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Persistence of belief in a particular religion is aided if that religion teaches that God punishes disbelief.… Read the rest
Good Girls Don’t Need HPV Vaccine
Jan 18th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Only sluts need it, so don’t vaccinate your daughters; if they get HPV, they’re sluts, so they deserve it.… Read the rest
Dawkins on Why ‘Tolerance’ is not Enough
Jan 18th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Opposition to stem-cell research, abortion, contraception are all religiously inspired prohibitions.… Read the rest
Dreams of an Empty Room
Jan 18th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
When the piles of books and papers get too tall – put everything in a box, then find a place for the box.… Read the rest
Intelligent Design Goes Scientific
Jan 18th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Maybe if it does ‘experiments,’ federal judges will let it into science classrooms.… Read the rest
Ministers Get Science Wrong, Block Research
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Researchers explained hybrid embryos to ministers several times, but the research is ‘unpopular.’… Read the rest
Debate on Human-animal Embryos for Research
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Colin Blakemore notes absence of evidence of harm and potential for life-saving research.… Read the rest
Public Debate on Hybrid Embryos
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Scientists say the research could provide cures; opponents say it ‘tampers with nature,’ is unethical. … Read the rest
Hybrid Embryos Pro and Con
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The reasons against are noticeably…thin.… Read the rest
Nigel Warburton Interviews Simon Blackburn
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘Good philosophy always has had to take some nourishment from surrounding politics, moral concerns, and science.’… Read the rest
Peter Singer on a Dubious Distinction
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Refusal of burdensome treatment okay (except in Italy); why is assisted refusal not okay?… Read the rest
The Market Summary is Phatic Communication
Jan 17th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
A message without any real content, just there for the sake of communicating something. … Read the rest
Interview with Michael Bérubé
Jan 16th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Cosmopolitanism is better than parochialism. Let’s don’t fetishize the local.… Read the rest
Behold, a Conservative Atheist
Jan 16th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Who got frustrated with the preening piety of conservative pundits.… Read the rest
