Afternoon Links — 1.7.11

Microcredit agencies that work for profit may work better for the poor than many people think.

And localism may be much less useful to man than many people think.

The Israeli spy agency Mossad must be far, far cleverer at plotting then you think.

Romanian witches threaten to curse their government for taxing them.

The ACLU threatens Catholic hospitals — and civil liberty. (There’s something wrong with the formatting, as of 1:30: the story starts with “Take a case that, on the surface”.)

The BBC declares that in dealing with radicalized Muslims , the real danger is Christian fundamentalists.

A team of archaeologists are trying to save the ruins of ancient Babylon .

Damian Thompson recommends a new book on dealing with Muslims .

George Marsden examines the faith of Time-Life’s Henry R. Luce .

Finally, an old story, but worth passing on: A Republican pagan runs for the New York City council.

Thanks to Gregory Laughlin and the New Oxford Review for links.