Afternoon Links — 1.5.11

David Tubbs of King’s College reviews Martha Nussbaum’s From Disgust to Humanity . She “wants to show that much of that opposition arises from what she calls the “politics of disgust”—a politics based on visceral reactions and disreputable attempts at psychological manipulation.” This, he argues, is not true.

Another King’s College professor, Anne Hendersthott, exposes the way that some Catholic theologians “explicitly point to the role played by Catholic theologians in providing theological cover for [she is quoting the bishop of Phoenix] ‘a litany of practices in direct conflict with Catholic teachings’.”

In New York, reports the New York Times , “since worries about the future or negative vibes from the past are two things New Yorkers cannot complain to management about, a very tiny industry of smudgers — or ‘space clearers,’ the term Ms. Wendell prefers — has evolved to fill these needs.” She charges $800 to $1,800 for clearing the space .

The popular idea that “domestic animals are beneficial to human health and happiness,” writes a psychologist in the New York Times , discussing the new field of anthrozoology, ”the truth is that we know little about how pets could affect us biologically, or why a health benefit accrues to some people but not others.”

A canon lawyer examines the question of whether Governor Cuomo should receive communion .

A map shows who conquered the Middle East over 3500 years.

A list of the twenty-five best Westerns (starting with the first, so you don’t have to count down).