It is snobbish and improbable to assume that complex art is appreciated only by the upper class.… 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Inevitably links go out of date.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.
Four People Killed in Cartoon Protests
Feb 6th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia Benson‘They want to know whether Muslims are extremists or not. Death to them and to their newspapers.’… Read the rest
Peter Berkowitz Reviews Theory’s Empire
Feb 6th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonTheory is The Key to almost everything.… Read the rest
Jordanian Editors Arrested for Insulting Religion
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia Benson‘Muslims of the world be reasonable,’ wrote Mr Momani, so no wonder he got busted.… Read the rest
Munira Mirza Says Muslims Want Freedom Too
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonCensorship in the West bolsters the moral authority of leaders in the Middle East to censor their own citizens.… Read the rest
A-Level Maths Dumbed Down?
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonMany teachers think so; others think A-Levels help all students to succeed. At what?… Read the rest
White House Tells NASA What to Say
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonFor instance, to add the word ‘theory’ after every mention of the Big Bang.… Read the rest
NASA Admin’s Statement on Scientific Openness
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia Benson‘It is not the job of public affairs officers to alter, filter or adjust engineering or scientific material produced by NASA’s technical staff.’… Read the rest
Bad Astronomy Takes Issue With George Deutsch
Feb 5th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonYoung party hack orders NASA to teach religion – what’s the problem?… Read the rest
Embassies Burn in Damascus as Tantrums Continue
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonVatican says right to freedom of expression does not imply right to offend religious beliefs.… Read the rest
No One Knows What the Prophet Looked Like
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonNo one could seriously claim to recognise the Prophet in images drawn by Danish cartoonists.… Read the rest
World Press Reaction
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonOne thing to assert the right to publish, another thing to put that right to the test. Oh.… Read the rest
The Guardian Takes a Stand
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonAgainst teasing ‘the founder of one of the world’s three great monotheistic religions.’… Read the rest
Ibn Warraq Urges Solidarity With the Cartoonists
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonUnashamed, noisy, public solidarity, lest the forces trying to impose a totalitarian ideology win.… Read the rest
Having a Thin Skin Can Be Used as a Weapon
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonIt allows people to create their own definition of respect and require us to observe it.… Read the rest
Petition to Defend Free Speech and Secularism
Feb 4th, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonCondemn threats and violence as a way to silence criticism and satire.… Read the rest
Agnès Callamard of Article 19 on Prophetic Fallacy
Feb 3rd, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonOne striking feature of these events is the remarkable absence of sensible dialogue.… Read the rest
Sign and Sight Gives Useful Overview
Feb 3rd, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonA survey of the European press on the cartoons.… Read the rest
Jyllands-Posten Editor Says it was Worth It
Feb 3rd, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia Benson‘We wanted to show how deeply entrenched self-censorship has already become.’… Read the rest
Richard Wolin on Levinas and Heidegger
Feb 3rd, 2006 | Filed by Ophelia BensonBy rejecting reason, Heidegger severed the pivotal link between insight and emancipation.… Read the rest