Free Republic

One in three Swiss thinks it is "definitely false" that humans developed from earlier species of animals, according to an international survey on evolution. How seriously should we take the news that only Austria is less enlightened among "old" European countries? Is it simply a reflection of Switzerland's religious history and dislike of change – or a serious failure of the education system? The journal Science recently published a survey by Jon Miller at Michigan State University which put the following statement to more than 34,000 people in 32 Europe countries, the United States and Japan: "Human beings, as we...

Google, whose founders reportedly drive Prius gas-electric cars and have invested in alternative energy, is now taking a stand for animal rights. The company will announce that its cafeterias will serve only eggs from cage-free hens, according to an article in the San Jose Mercury News on Thursday. That's no small matter; the company serves about 300,000 eggs a year to about 6,000 employees a year, the article said. "Animal rights groups urged the switch, noting that at many large farms, six or more hens are confined in a single wire cage," the newspaper reported. "For 12 to 18 months...

<p>This cartoon is inappropriate and offensive. Too many times have certain groups declared their enemies to be non-human. This serves no cause but that of barbarism. We cannot ignore the real social processes behind our enemies' actions, as well as our own. Any activities carried out by bin Laden are those of a human being, acting in a world created by humans, including us.</p>