Reason not to believe in God: In Italy, people are protesting the choice of Israel as the guest of honor at Turin’s yearly International Book Fair. The protests include calls for a boycott, because as history shows, refusing to read books usually leads to human rights reforms.

Reason to believe in God: The Coen brothers will be adapting Michael Chabon’s Alaska-noir novel The Yiddish Policemen’s Union. Assuming this will turn out to be No Country for Old Jewish Men, everyone wins.

Previously: Do I Believe In God Today?

 

Reason to Believe in God: "[A] father decided there was no other way to save his 2-year-old son from a blazing apartment fire than to drop him out of a fourth-story window. ... He was caught safely by an off-duty police officer who just happened to be in the neighborhood."

Reason Not to Believe in God: "Meet the Spartans narrowly conquered Rambo to nab the top spot in the weekend box office, according to studio estimates Sunday."

Previously: Did I Believe in God in January?

UPDATE: I just Googled "Reason Not to Believe in God" and this was the actual result:

 

 

Extremely strange considering that this was a joke in the last "Do I Believe in God Today?" (Geeks: did I unknowingly make this happen? Oh well, it's still hilarious.)

Anyway, today's edition:

Reason to Believe in God: After "a British Airways passenger jet ... crash landed at London's Heathrow Airport on Thursday," only "17 people suffered minor injuries" even though the "left wing and left engine of the aircraft were severely damaged, as if it had skidded across the ground. At least one of the plane's wheels had been torn off."

Reason Not to Believe in God: "A young woman found dying by her parents was plagued by allergies and may have been killed by brushing her teeth, said her family."

 

 

 

 

 

God: Well, or what happens when you image Google "God"Every day, like Rod Stewart, I'm going to look to find a reason to believe. That's right: I'm questioning the existence of some kind of higher intelligence behind the workings of the universe ... based on things I find on the Internet. Yes, that's the tree I'm barking up.

There's a God!

*Choire's blogging over at Kottke.org about Kathy Acker and Maureen Dowd's party girl days.

*Someone finally realized that there should be a restaurant called "I Fucking Hate Monday's."

*The term "hatewatching" (usage: "The other day I was hatewatching Cashmere Mafia and I realized that the portrayal of gay men on those shows is not unlike the portrayal of African American mammies in films such as Gone with the Wind.") was coined.

There's No God!

*Former Indonesian dictator Suharto is still alive, in spite of having had several strokes, multiple organ failure, and now, pneumonia in one lung.

*While rushing to erect Trump SoHo, which a leading preservationist called "a monument to greed and hubris," three construction workers were injured and one died.

*"The biggest-selling album of the year was Josh Groban’s “Noël,” which sold 3.7 million copies despite being released in October."

Three vs. three -- jury's still out, I guess! We'll see what happens tomorrow.