Indonesia minister says immorality causes disasters

I've covered this sort of thing before, but here's another claim that disasters are caused by immorality (and naughty television!):

A government minister has blamed Indonesia's recent string of natural disasters on people's immorality.

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.

His comments came as he addressed a prayer meeting on Friday in Padang, Sumatra, which was hit by a powerful earthquake in late September.

The article points out that earthquakes are more likely to continue to occur because Indonesia is actually situated on a series of fault lines. I often wonder when a politician or religious minister makes a claim that God's displeasure about porn, homosexuality, abortion, or the like is actually behind some natural disaster--do they actually even believe that? Do they wake up in the morning and shout "Eureka! I have solved the tsunami dilemma! God must be cheesed off about all the porn!" Or do they hope their hearers are just really dumb and will say, "Yeah, it must be the porn. That is the only sensible explanation. I will promptly burn my stash or at least put it in the basement where I can't get to it right away."

Also, since natural disasters look so, well, natural, I wonder why anyone would find that an effective way for a deity to speak to people. It's always earthquakes along fault lines, or tornadoes in "Tornado Alley". If a divine being wanted to get people's attention, it seems like something more outre` would be required. I'm not necessarily talking about showers of salamanders. Maybe a sandstorm in a place where there just isn't any sand nearby. Or a two-foot snowfall where snow just doesn't fall.

I know. I'm being snarky. It just strikes me as past cynical that anyone would use a disaster that, as in the case of the 2004 tsunami, can kill even hundreds of thousands of people and with a straight face tell people who have lost loved ones "it's because you are immoral and bad and God hates you for it." And then says God hates them because of.... naughty tv shows and porno DVD's. Not rape, murder and pillage--just dodgy entertainment values. Because I think that's a pretty dark thing to say, I simply must bust on this dumbass.