Promoting Science and Critical Thinking
This week the UK’s MPs’ vote on a decision regarding mitochondrial gene therapy. You would think that the obvious rational decision should be “of course” because this is about making a dramatic change in the lives of those who might inherit a mitochondrial disease, which is passed on to children from mothers who possess mutations in the DNA … Read more
Today’s BBC Big Questions has three – ‘Are the rich paying their fair share?’, ‘Should the NHS fund homeopathy?’ and ‘Are women taking over religion?’ Oh this is easy … “No”, “No”, and “Nobody cares (except a few religious folks)”, ah but getting there will be fun, because as I start to write this prior … Read more
Famous (in Ireland) Irish TV Personality, Gay Byrne (that really is his name, not his orientation,it is an abbreviation for Gabriel), recently interviewed well-known and highly popular comedian Stephen Fry on one episode of his TV series “The Meaning of Life” in which he interviews well-known individuals with a set a predictable questions. Now Stephen Fry, knowing what … Read more
Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi continues to face 950 lashes and a decade in prison – simply for calling for free speech. The UK government has so far failed to call for Raif’s freedom, despite knowing of and speaking on his case – alongside a visit to Saudi Arabia by the Prime Minister. Ask our … Read more
OK, nothing too serious today, but instead a bit of entertainment. Because he is rather well-known, Richard Dawkins, tends to attract some rather amusing “fan mail” from those who vigorously disagree with him … except of course, being more that a tad eccentric, their strident and rather abusive criticism is actually quite entertaining. So dive in and … Read more
Freedom of speech is a rather important right, and while it is quite easy to support the concept when it is manifesting itself as criticism of ideas we oppose (drawing Mohammed for example), what happens when we are faced with the promotion of things that we find to be highly offensive and utterly absurd – … Read more