Humanist Society of Scotland News and Media Scan http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:36:04 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/images/M_images/HSS_Right_Signature.gif http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk Humanist Society of Scotland News and Media Scan http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/when-will-the-church-of-england-face-up-to-the-abuse-i-suffered-in-their-care.html Teresa Cooper has been fighting for justice for 18 years, but so far has only been given an out-of-court settlement without apology, reports The Evening Standard Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:42:10 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/catalonia-votes-to-ban-all-forms-of-bullfighting-in-nationalist-move.html Animal rights groups are celebrating, but fans say the ruling is nothing but a desire to be un-Spanish, reports Anita Brooks in The Independent Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:36:56 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/gove-welcomes-atheist-schools.html The Government is ready to back the creation of atheist schools as part of its series of reforms, the Education Secretary, Michael Gove, said yesterday, reports Richard Garner, Education Editor of The Independent Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:34:51 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/new-climate-data-reignite-debate.html Polls showed public faith in climate science dropping, and an increasingly vocal chorus of “climate sceptics” protesting that the credibility of climate science had been destroyed. But new research released by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Wednesday... Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:28:59 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-backwardness-of-catholic-bashing.html Far from being enlightened, the attacks on Catholicism ahead of the pope’s UK visit are illiberal, censorious and ignorant, writes Kevin Rooney in Sp!ked Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:24:16 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/cameron-gaza-is-a-prison-camp.html PM in a humanitarian call for Israel to end its blockade, reports The Mirror Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:18:49 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/locked-in-syndrome-man-demands-right-to-die.html Tony Nicklinson, 54, seeks to force DPP to issue guidance against murder prosecutions for some 'mercy killing' families, reports The Guardian Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:17:15 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/civil-funerals-due-to-start-in-wrexham.html Stephen Caldecott, managing director of Caldecott and Sons funeral directors in Wrexham, said he thought the civil funerals would catch on. There is a demand for this kind of service, he said. A lot of people still... Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:13:47 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/dealing-with-dementia.html “We need a trained workforce in dementia care, but we also need a change in attitude at the top, where the value of the workforce is recognised and developed, which gives them so much more confidence in their abilities. Sometimes... Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:24:15 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/john-knox-to-be-included-in-pageant-during-popes-visit-to-scotland.html Knox's surprise inclusion by Catholic Church leaders follows accusations that this year's 450th anniversary of the Reformation is being ignored by the Scottish Government, reports The Daily Record Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:20:12 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/stay-in-school-longer-to-avoid-dementia.html Researchers have found that individuals with ‘more' education are better equipped to stave off dementia, reports The Independent Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:17:55 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/british-girls-undergo-horror-of-genital-mutilation-despite-tough-laws.html Female circumcision will be inflicted on up to 2,000 British schoolgirls during the summer holidays – leaving brutal physical and emotional scars. Yet there have been no prosecutions against the practice, reports The Observer Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:43:34 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/afghanistan-war-logs-90-000-classified-documents-revealed-by-wikileaks.html Tens of thousands of secret American military documents have been leaked disclosing how Nato forces have killed scores of civilians in unreported incidents in Afghanistan, reports The Daily Telegraph Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:41:18 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/life-expectancy-gap-widest-since-great-depression.html The poorest people in Britain are twice as likely to die before the age of 65 than the richest - the highest inequality in mortality since the economic depression of the 1930s, reports Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor of The Daily... Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:39:55 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-corporate-warriors-who-make-a-killing-in-afghanistan.html According to the humanitarian agency Oxfam, more than $40 billion has been spent on Afghanistan since 2002, with about half going towards training and equipping the army and police. Much of this has been undertaken by PSCs, and this before... Sun, 25 Jul 2010 02:33:15 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/london-buses-to-carry-female-ordination-advert-during-popes-visit.html Catholic group's initiative will see the slogan 'Pope Benedict Ordain Women Now' appear on 10 buses throughout September, reports Riazat Butt, religious affairs correspondent of The Guardian Sun, 25 Jul 2010 02:30:18 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/church-denounces-gay-priests-after-magazine-revelations.html An Italian Catholic diocese has denounced homosexual priests for their double life and said they should not be in the priesthood. The Diocese of Rome was responding to a magazine article on three homosexual priests that gave details... Sun, 25 Jul 2010 02:27:50 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/fresh-call-for-gay-marriages-to-be-legalised.html It might be marriage in all but name – but now campaigners want to end that final inequality in gay partnerships, reports Rebecca McQuillan in The Herald Thu, 22 Jul 2010 11:26:46 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/humanist-ceremonies-soar-in-popularity.html Wedding co-ordinators across leading hotel group Macdonald Hotels Resorts have seen inquiries rise, with one in 10 couples opting for a Humanist wedding as a more personal alternative to a civil ceremony, reports The Press Journal... Tue, 20 Jul 2010 03:38:14 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/how-to-beat-depression-without-drugs.html Social connectedness is important to Ilardi. In The Depression Cure, he argues that the brain mistakenly interprets the pain of depression as an infection. Thinking that isolation is needed, it sends messages to the sufferer to crawl into a... Tue, 20 Jul 2010 01:04:49 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/just-one-in-ten-police-free-to-fight-crime.html Just one in ten police officers is free to tackle crime at any given time because the vast majority are either off work or tied up on other duties, a watchdog report has disclosed, reports The Telegraph Tue, 20 Jul 2010 01:02:03 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/bar-chairman-backs-calls-to-reconsider-drug-laws.html Nicholas Green QC, chairman of the UK Bar Council, has come closer than any previous incumbent of the post to calling for the decriminalisation of personal use of drugs including heroin, cocaine and cannabis, reports The Independent Tue, 20 Jul 2010 01:00:02 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/man-s-court-bid-to-clarify-law-on-mercy-killing.html Tony Nicklinson, 56, from Melksham, near Chippenham, Wiltshire, suffers from “locked-in syndrome” and has only been able to communicate using a plastic board and letters, looking, blinking and nodding to spell out words, since he suffered a stroke in Greece... Tue, 20 Jul 2010 00:55:56 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/in-defence-of-secularism.html The United States, Turkey and India all have secular constitutions. However, none of them contains the definitive secularism . There is no such thing, writes Terry Sanderson in The New Statesman Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:06:37 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/time-is-right-for-secular-reforms.html THE TIME is right to mount a campaign for a secular constitution that represents the State’s pluralist society, Labour Party Senator Ivana Bacik has said. Speaking at the agm of Atheist Ireland at the weekend Ms Bacik said there was... Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:04:14 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/britain-trails-china-in-dash-to-low-carbon-economy-warns-tim-yeo.html Britain and other western countries are in danger of being left behind by China which is investing furiously in low carbon technology, aiming to profit from tough climate change targets in the next 20 years, a leading Tory... Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:00:33 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/burka-ban-why-must-i-cast-off-the-veil.html The French vote to ban Muslim women from covering their faces in public is just as oppressive as the Islamic law forcing them to do it in the first place, says Nesrine Malik in The Telegraph Sun, 18 Jul 2010 04:22:03 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/revealed-brutal-guide-to-punishing-jailed-youths.html Shocking details of techniques used to inflict pain deliberately on children in privately run jails have been revealed for the first time in a government document obtained by the Observer Sun, 18 Jul 2010 04:20:18 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/200-000-for-a-headteacher-does-that-strike-you-as-being-fair.html The case of Mark Elms has given us the perfect opportunity to decide what someone's truly worth, writes Will Hutton in The Observer Sun, 18 Jul 2010 04:16:00 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/banning-veil-undermines-secular-democracy.html Rather than enhancing secular democracy, a ban on the veil, or niqab, diminishes it. Instead of curbing “Islamic fundamentalism,” it fans it. Far from advancing the integration of veil wearers into the mainstream, it marginalizes them even more, writes Haroon... Sat, 17 Jul 2010 01:37:26 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/champion-of-uk-burka-ban-declares-war-on-veil-wearing-constituents.html A Conservative MP says he will refuse to hold meetings with Muslim women wearing full Islamic dress at his constituency surgery unless they lift their face veil, reports Andrew Grice, Political Editor of The Independent Sat, 17 Jul 2010 01:34:23 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/catholics-angry-as-church-puts-female-ordination-on-par-with-sex-abuse.html Women's groups describe Vatican's decision on female ordination as 'appalling', reports The Guardian Sat, 17 Jul 2010 01:32:06 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-clash-of-civilisations-will-not-be-with-islam.html “Don’t panic!” says distinguished Cambridge academic, writes Sholto Byrnes in The New Statesman Thu, 15 Jul 2010 03:03:56 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/israel-should-swap-land-for-peace-say-three-quarters-of-british-jews.html Survey finds UK's Jewish community supports Israel's right to defend itself but should now help create Palestinian state, reports The Press Association Thu, 15 Jul 2010 02:59:16 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg-the-chicken-researchers-say-read-more-http-www.nydai.html Researchers wrote in a recently published report that it all comes down to one protein - ovocledidin-17 - which helps in the formation of the egg's hard shell, reports The New York Daily News Thu, 15 Jul 2010 02:57:22 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/raoul-moat-geordie-rambo-hero-to-online-fans-who-hate-authority.html WHILE the actions and threats of Raoul Moat shocked those watching the stand-off unfolding live on television, to many online communities he was a Geordie Rambo and Angel of Vengeance writes Rory Reynolds in The Scotsman Thu, 15 Jul 2010 02:54:23 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/raoul-moat-this-troubled-man.html David Cameron should realise that, no matter how depraved the crimes, sympathy is normal, writes Tanya Gold in The Guardian Thu, 15 Jul 2010 02:51:27 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/ken-clarke-says-imprisonment-not-linked-to-crime-fall.html There is no link between rising levels of imprisonment and falling crime, Justice Secretary Ken Clarke has said. No-one can prove cause and effect with crime having fallen in most of the Western world in the 1990s, reports... Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:21:55 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/french-mps-vote-to-ban-islamic-full-veil-in-public.html France's lower house of parliament has overwhelmingly approved a bill that would ban wearing the Islamic full veil in public. There were 335 votes for the bill and only one against in the 557-seat National Assembly, reports BBC News Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:19:27 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/stem-cell-method-put-to-the-test-in-parkinsons-study.html The UK's first major investigation of a disease using stem cells that does not involve the need to create and destroy embryos is being launched, reports Pallab Ghosh Science correspondent, BBC News Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:17:42 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/gorillas-learn-about-injustice-and-revenge-by-playing-tag.html A game similar to tag is thought to prepare gorillas for real conflicts over food and mates, say researchers, reports Ian Sample, science correspondent of The Guardian Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:15:39 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/violence-echoes-beyond-the-streets-of-belfast.html Northern Ireland's image worldwide has been seriously damaged by television images of rioting and burning vehicles. Such graphic pictures of turbulence seem to make a mockery of the Irish peace process, reports David McKittrick, Ireland Correspondent of The Independent Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:13:43 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/eco-warriors-pacific-journey-shows-how-dumb-plastic-is-killing-our-seas.html David de Rothschild set out on a mammoth ocean crossing aboard his recycled yacht to highlight pollution of Earth's waters – but even he was shocked by what he found, reports The Observer Sun, 11 Jul 2010 03:33:13 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-c-of-e-will-die-if-it-shuts-out-gays-and-women.html We live in a society where children routinely have one parent, marriage is at an all-time low, and the divorce rate is soaring. Civil partnerships have been a huge success, accepted by the vast majority of the public. For a... Sun, 11 Jul 2010 03:31:04 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/popes-visit-could-cost-britain-more-than-20m.html The budget for Pontiff's four-day visit is spiralling out of control with an estimated taxpayers' bill for the trip expected to rise well beyond the original £8m figure, reports The Independent on Sunday Sun, 11 Jul 2010 03:28:40 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/climategate-fails-to-stir-up-a-storm.html The public's reaction to the 'Climategate' verdict has been surprising, writes Geoffrey Lean in The Daily Telegraph Sat, 10 Jul 2010 03:07:22 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-betrayal-of-haiti.html Haitians wait in tents for a recovery that has still barely begun. Billions were promised after the January earthquake. Six months on, little has changed, reports Guy Adams in The Independent Sat, 10 Jul 2010 03:03:21 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-church-of-england-looks-mad-following-the-jeffrey-john-snub.html If the rejection of Jeffrey John for the Southwark job is in many ways embarrassing for the Church, the reaction to the news is just as bad. Liberals have responded hysterically, showing signs of paranoia by claiming that the gay... Sat, 10 Jul 2010 02:56:29 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/the-state-and-religion-the-church-risks-looking-absurd.html The church's position on women, gay men and lesbians is out of line with both the law and the mood of the times, says an Editorial in The Guardian Sat, 10 Jul 2010 02:53:55 +0100 http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/media-scan/channel-4-rescues-the-god-slot.html The new Channel 4 series of religious and ethical meditations breathes life into a stale format, writes Thought for the World contributor, Jonathan Bartley in The Guardian Fri, 09 Jul 2010 02:22:33 +0100