Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Theodicy Watch: Part 2

Who caused the bird flu in Israel? We have a new contender. More details here. (Warning: link probably not work-safe if you live in the South.)

Rabbi David Basri, head of the Magen David Yeshiva in Jerusalem, on Tuesday lashed out at the left of center Meretz Party for running election ads supporting same-sex marriage.

Israelis elect a new government this month and Meretz is the only party supporting gay marriage.

...
"The Bible says that God punishes depravity first through plagues against animals and then in people," Basri said in a religious edict.

In an interview with the Reuters news agency Basri's son quoted the rabbi as saying the bird flu outbreak stemmed from the leftist pary "strengthening and encouraging homosexuality."

...Basri is no stranger to attacks on gays. In 2004 he lashed out at gays on the eve of pride celebrations in Jerusalem.

"This is not a disease or a deviation, but a straight-out abomination. Even animals don't behave this way... There is no place in the Holy City for such a phenomenon," he said.

Now, yes, Basri is quite the dill-hole, but just to be fair, let's note that he actually blamed MERETZ for the bird flu, not gays themselves. So for those of you keeping score at home- gays actually aren't powerful enough to incurr God's wrath on a bunch of innocent birds; political ads about gay marriage ARE. Just so we're all clear. Maybe there should be a law passed making TV ads a registered weapon. I mean, if gay-marriage leads to bird flu, who knows what commercials for evolution would do? (Turn Rabbi Eliashiv into a frog, maybe?)

...Hey, I wonder if the birds were gay? Someone should do some checking up on this.

Anyway, I'm hoping that this jackass and Marzel will hear about each other and, infuriated that someone would dare have a differing interpretation than them ("That's like, so Reform of you!"), challenge each other to a death-match, Elijah-style. I'm thinking a nice, tasteful, "whoever can make their God spontaneously combust the other one first" sort of thing. Maybe they can show it on Lifetime or Fox Family Channel.

(Spodik-tip to DovBear, my personal Maggid.)

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