Last December, a Pennsylvania Federal District court ruled that the Dover School District cannot teach "intelligent design"--the theory that the complexity of life indicates the existence of a divine "designer"--as a scientific alternative to Darwin's theory of evolution. Judge John E. Jones argued that intelligent
The buzz about Christian propaganda couched in Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe seems to have subsided. With the film's premiere, the suspense about ideology has largely been replaced by universal commendations of its "enchanting animations" and portrayal of "family values." Secular
I must confess, I love to go shopping. Although my meager grad student stipend doesn't generally afford outlandish spending sprees, I delight in simple, gratis pleasures such as testing lotion samples at Bath & Body Works and visiting boutiques to try on colorful, lush silk
On February 9th, the Daily Illini at the University of Illinois published the controversial cartoons of Mohammed that have exploded into a world-wide Muslim protest against the right to free speech. The original publishers of these cartoons are hiding in fear of their lives. Embassies
By now few of our readers have eluded the fairy dust that has settled all over the world since Harry Potter first cast its spell. This summer Rowling seemed to have yet again bewitched entire populations, as young and old, rich and poor, college professors
We have forgotten 9/11. Back then, four years ago, we all swore to "never forget" the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Everywhere you turned, American flags, waved proudly in the wind and bumper stickers declared our solidarity as a nation and reaffirming that pledge: "We
Thousands of college freshmen across America wandered the tables of campus club fairs this fall. Many, staring at the sea of brightly colored posters, felt a pressure to find a niche--to adopt an identity by the act of joining a club, a religion, or a
The anti-science right is on the march. Whether they're opposing embryonic stem cell research, evolution, the effectiveness of condoms, therapeutic cloning, or Terri Schiavo's medical diagnosis, conservatives are standing firmly against science whenever it conflicts with their vision and values. "You should allow the Word of
A peculiar and noteworthy feature of mankind can be observed in the importance we lend to certain pieces of matter. Consider the perilous quests on which men have launched, both mythical and historical, in pursuit of certain objects--like a wooden cup (the "Holy Grail") and
A recent article in USA Today ("Enough Already With Kid Gloves," June 1) exposes some of the absurdities committed by the self-esteem movement in education, such as the prohibiting of red correction marks. It seems the color is "frightening" to students, and teachers should use