Link round-up for 24 December 2011

Aww, how sweet!

Logically, you must be blind.

What if pregnancy tests had existed 2,000 years ago?

Eve the Atheist posts some creepy art by Fred Einaudi.

Gingrich is endorsed by a website that promotes adultery -- hey, he's probably got an even bigger tab running there than at Tiffany's (found via Smartypants).

Left and right may find common cause in fighting against the evil SOPA internet-censorship plan.

Even the Wall Street Journal is aghast at Republicans' bungling of the payroll-tax fight.

If your parents are bigots, show them this (found via Republic of Gilead).

David Frum looks at libertarian obfuscation about the Civil War, slavery, and Ron Paul.

Here's a Ron Paul letter from 1993, removing any doubt that the man is a dangerous paranoid crank; analysis here (thanks to Leslie Parsley for both links). More Paul quotes here. And yes, Paul in 1996 acknowledged writing his newsletters.

Gingrich has some freaky ideas too.

Atheist Oasis looks at the Promise Keepers.

Skyrocketing economic inequality threatens America's future.

Atheists are the biggest philanthropists.

In South Carolina, the Justice Department finally takes a stand against Republican efforts to disenfranchise non-white voters.

Historian Simon Schama remembers Hitchens. Frank Schaeffer looks at the hypocrisy of the Christians who condemn him (sent by Nance), and Bay of Fundie dissects one in detail. Some are already trying to downplay his atheism.

It was smoking and alcohol that killed Hitchens, and it's important to face that fact honestly.

Eric Hobsbawm sees hope in the mass upheavals of this year.

Britain's top foreign-policy man, William Hague, shakes things up.

Conservative analyst Ambrose Evans-Pritchard acknowledges the same point I've been making for months -- the European Union has become a tool of the right wing to destroy socialism in Europe.

German economists debate the dubious efforts to save the euro, which still looks doomed.

As religion dies out in Europe, what to do with all the useless churches?

Journalist Mona Eltahawy describes her experience with brutal Egyptian security men. Women are taking a more active role in the protests.

Qaddhafi was not very nice.

Rats display empathy and altruism. (I don't know why this would surprise anyone. Rats may be small but they're still mammals.)

This is what an orgasm looks like.

There are actually people who think immortality will be a bad thing. They're wrong.

California researchers are on the trail of ways to stop age-related deterioration of the brain.

[Posted a day early this week.]