Scott McLemee discusses American weirdness aka exceptionalism with historian Eric Rauchway.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Bush’s Strange Press Conference 
Aug 23rd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The key reality that Bush fails to grasp is that terrorism and democracy are not opposites.… Read the rest
Fred Halliday on the ‘Greater West Asian Crisis’
Aug 23rd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Events in Lebanon, Iraq, Libya, are becoming comprehensible only in a broader regional context.… Read the rest
Sunday School Teacher Fired for Being a Woman
Aug 22nd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
She’d taught there for 54 years, but Paul said women had to shut up, so that’s that.… Read the rest
Catholic Church Backs ‘Faith Crime’ Investigation
Aug 22nd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘Another sign that Christianphobia has become fashionable and acceptable.’… Read the rest
Religious ‘Worship’ Should Remain Mandatory
Aug 22nd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Catholic Education Service says sixth formers should not be allowed to opt out.… Read the rest
What’s Behind ‘Muslim Anger’?
Aug 22nd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Mark Sageman points to small group dynamics as a key trigger.… Read the rest
Civil Liberties Aren’t Eternal Verities
Aug 22nd, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Social critics say our culture tends to mistake ephemeral modern phenomena for eternal truths.… Read the rest
‘Religiously Aggravated Hate Crime’ Investigated
Aug 21st, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
So be careful what you say. Better yet, don’t say anything.… Read the rest
Harold Meyerson Reviews Peter Beinart
Aug 21st, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Since 1968, it has almost always been time to reinvent the liberal project. … Read the rest
Michael Walzer on Regime Change and Just War
Aug 21st, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
NGOs, such as HRW or AI, also aim, in their own way, at regime change.… Read the rest
Emotions Influence Moral Reasoning
Aug 21st, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The hope is that by better understanding how we think, we can teach ourselves to think better.… Read the rest
Woman’s Murder by Muslim Father Shocks Italy
Aug 20th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
She refused to return to Gujarat to marry a cousin.… Read the rest
Shahid Malik not Impressed by ‘Muslim Leaders’
Aug 20th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
MP thinks sharia law and more religious holidays not quite the answer.… Read the rest
US Theocrats Call for Stoning of Non-believers
Aug 20th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
They’re a minority – for the moment.… Read the rest
Mary Warnock: Not Everyone Can Win a Nobel
Aug 20th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
How can universities be world class without being elitist?… Read the rest
Nick Cohen on Educational Abundance
Aug 20th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Plenty of media-literate drama queens, not enough engineers, mathematicians and linguists.… Read the rest
‘Martyrdom Videos’ Found
Aug 19th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Good to know publicity angle was not neglected.… Read the rest
John Sutherland on Arguing Over Shakespeare
Aug 19th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Did he invent the human, was he a Catholic, was the Globe liminally subversive?… Read the rest
A Third of a Generation is Creationist
Aug 19th, 2006 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Creationists ignore the evidence against it, and minds closed to the truth are dangerous.… Read the rest
