13 Tishri 5769: International Moment of Frustration Scream Day

Greetings.

Worthy cause of the day:

Relevant to Divine Misconceptions:

1. “The Certainty Bias: A Potentially Dangerous Mental Flaw”: Those who are dead certain about their beliefs can be dead wrong. It pays to never forget this in religion because irrational uncertainty can easily lead to heresy and sinful behavior. This sort of thing is dealt with a lot in Ḥafeṣ Ḥayyim (One Who Desires Life), a classic Jewish work on the laws of impermissible kinds of speech; in it is discussed how misinterpretation of other people’s actions and speech can lead to bad feelings, slander, and improper action against said people.
   
2. “Nicaragua's Ortega says crisis is God punishing U.S.”: Thus is it written:

   Nicaragua's leftist President Daniel Ortega, a U.S. foe since the Cold War, said God was punishing the United States with the financial crisis for trying to impose its economic principles on poor countries.

   And how does Daniel Ortega know this? Is it written in some prophetic text? Is Ortega himself a prophet? What makes him think he knows the Will of God?
   
3. “Holy war strikes in India: 35 Christians killed and 50,000 forced from their homes”: Not all the religious violence happening these days involves Islam. This unfolding story deals with Hindu-Christian conflict in India.
   

Today’s news and commentary:

• “DNA fingerprinting could reveal your surname”
  
• “Strong-arm robber in Mich. ends up $30 in the hole”
  
• “Sultry to Scorching: Rising Temps May Be Too Hot for Tropical Species”
  
• “Meet Sarah Palin's radical right-wing pals” (This is worrying.)
  
• “Wine on tap blamed on plumbing error” (This sounds like something out of a Mork and Mindy episode.)
  
• “Virgin shark got pregnant in Virginia aquarium”
  

Today’s weird thing is “Hip Hop Violin - Paul Dateh and inka one”, which you can blame Barry for.

Enjoy and share the weirdness.

Aaron