Daily Archives: September 24, 2008

Eros and Thanatos: A Gorgeous Image of Dionysus, Discovered at Pompeii, Standing Alongside a Tranquil Vesuvius BEFORE It Had Exploded

A two thousand year old image of Dionysus, discovered at Pompeii. Dionysus giveth, and Dionysus taketh away:

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“Those of us who teach at Christian colleges write with the knowledge that our books may get us fired.” Christianity Today Reviews Richard Dawkins’ “The Oxford Book of Science Writing” and Brings Up the Delicate Issue of Intellectual Censorship at Evangelical Colleges

Under the ironic and provacative title, “No Science Please: We’re Evangelical,” Christianity Today just gave Richard Dawkins’ new anthology of science writing a POSITIVE review. The review also urged Evangelicals to stay open to the discoveries of science, including those … Continue reading

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“We come against the spirit of witchcraft! We come against the python spirits!”: Thomas Muthee, Sarah Palin’s Sexist Witch Hunting Supporter, Preached in Wasilla This Week—and Max Blumenthal of the Huffington Post Was There!

This weekend, Max Blumenthal of the Huffington Post went to Wasilla Assembly of God to see Thomas Muthee, Sarah Palin’s exorcist and witch hunting supporter, preach. He smuggled in microphones and tiny cameras so that he could get some documentation of what he … Continue reading

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Wall Street Bailout Metaphor Watch: From Bazookas in the Pocket to Mythical Sea Monsters

Talking Points Memo strings together the metaphors used in Senate committee hearings related to the Wall Street bailout: My favorite: Scylla and Charybdis (Mythical sea monsters that inhabit the strait between Sicily and Italy. If, as a sailor, you get too close … Continue reading

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“We Have Found a Witch, May We Burn Her?”: A Monty Python Retort to Sarah Palin’s Witch Hunting Exorcist Supporter, Thomas Muthee

Given Sarah Palin’s link to Thomas Muthee (see here), a Kenyan witch hunter and exorcist, and all the irrationality that witch hunting and exorcism in the 21st century entails, this seemed like a fitting retort:

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Big Bangs Before The Big Bang?: Testing the Multiverse Hypothesis

Over at Physorg.com, a science news website, there is an article on how scientists are trying to bring pre-Big Bang speculation into the realm of the empirical. For example, one of the theories that has been bandied about by scientists is … Continue reading

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If You’re Wondering Why Sarah Palin’s Exorcist, Thomas Muthee, is so Obsessed with Witches, This BBC Report on Witch Hunting in Kenya is Helpful

Apparently, witch fear and hunting is widespread in Kenya. Money quote from a May 2008 BBC report on 11 elderly people who were literally burned as witches in eastern Kenya: The mob dragged them out of their houses and burned them individually and … Continue reading

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From Darwin to Dawkins: A Book Review of Edward Larson’s “Evolution”

Edward Larson’s book, Evolution (Random House, 2004), is scientific, intellectual, and social history at its very best. The author seamlessly weaves: 1. basic recountings of the SCIENCE undergirding evolution, the BIOGRAPHIES of the scientists making contributions to evolutionary science,  and the social CONTROVERSIES generated by evolution … Continue reading

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