A government minister has blamed Indonesia's recent string of natural disasters on people's immorality."Dats right, Brethren and Sistern! We been smote!"
Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring said that there were many television programmes that destroyed morals. Therefore, the minister said, natural disasters would continue to occur.
Look on the bright side. All those pillars of salt dissolve right away when the tsunami hits them.
His comments came as he addressed a prayer meeting on Friday in Padang, Sumatra, which was hit by a powerful earthquake in late September. He also hit out at rising decadence - proven, he said, by the availability of Indonesia-made p0rnographic DVDs in local markets - and called for tougher laws.
Has it occurred to him that earthquakes seem to hit disproportionately in the Islamic world? You never see the fleshpots of Amsterdam trapped in collapsing whorehouses. Maybe the problem is that Moose limbs engage in too much head-bonking, thereby irritating the Lord, who sends them occasional gentle warnings.
According to the Jakarta Globe, his comments sparked an angry reaction on the internet, particularly among those who followed him on social networking site Twitter. Why focus on public immorality when there was so much within the government, one respondent reportedly asked.
I think they oughta outlaw head-bonking. Just watch the tectonic plates settle down.
More than 1,000 people died in the Padang earthquake, which toppled hundreds of buildings in and around the city.