Irrationality is enticing

Irrationality is enticing

Visiting the "haunted house" on Jl. Metro Pondok Indah in
South Jakarta is much better than sitting around complaining
about life's hardships. This could be what is on the minds of the
many Jakarta residents who have flocked to the empty house in the
luxurious housing complex in Pondok Indah.

Visiting the "haunted house", people can talk about anything
related to superstition.

The rumors about the house being haunted must be taken for
granted, since no one can clarify them.

These (irrational) rumors about the haunted house have
developed and spread very rapidly among the people.

According to experts, irrationality is part of the nature of
humans. But in Indonesia, where people have been living in
uncertainty for so long, it seems easier for people to become
irrational.

Some years ago, rumor had it that women wearing jilbab (Muslim
headdress for women) were roaming about and poisoning food at
traditional markets on the outskirts of Jakarta. Because of the
rumors, people felt justified in arresting anyone they thought
fit this profile.

So we are familiar with how strongly some people respond to
irrational rumors. The cases relating to the alleged graft by the
owner of the Sukabumi-based PT Qurnia Subur Alam Raya (QSAR) in
West Java, an agribusiness firm, and the Batutulis historical
site in Bogor, also in West Java, are proof that we are
vulnerable to rumors.

Such rumors are enticing. They can override our common sense.
We can enjoy rumors while we "get dizzy", but they must not trap
ourselves.

-- Koran Tempo, Jakarta