This is the inevitable conclusion of the brittle faith she has been taught. It is impossible, she has been told, to believe in God without also accepting this unworkably literal reading of every phrase in the first 11 chapters of Genesis. Thus, if the moon simply reflects the light of the sun and does not itself project light, she believes, then there is no God. And that means, she has been taught, that life is random, meaningless, nasty, brutish and short. Read more

Catching up after a hectic weekend: Things They Would Have You Believe; Paul Ryan's memory woes; the threat of more Rick Perry; convictions good, prison bad; Middle Earth vs. Hogwarts; still looking 4 the purple banana after all these years; and what's in the suitcase? Read more

Consider, for example, the news that taking Vioxx involved greater-than-reported risk of heart failure. That was really big news for the many consumers who were taking the drug, but there were no headlines reading, "You Might Be in Danger of Heart Failure." Instead, there were dozens of headlines reading, "You Might Want to Sell Your Shares in Merck." The "you" of the second headline referred to a much smaller group, and carried a much less urgent message, but that's (stupidly, indefensibly) how the Business section works. Read more

Wilson’s argument is based on the claim of hegemonic privilege for the majority sect. That is not an argument for “religious freedom.” It is the opposite of an argument for religious freedom. Wilson’s argument is that there is no such thing as religious liberty, no right to religious liberty — only a competition for dominance between sects to be settled by whichever has the greatest political muscle. Read more