[Avodah] establishing mamzerut

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Nov 14, 2006 at 09:45:42PM +0100, Arie Folger wrote:
: RMB wrote:
:> I was under the impression that we bend over backward lehatir agunos, as
:> well as to presume kosher yichus. And thus, I am very surprised that
:> 1:1,000 understainty is sufficient le'esor.

: Correction: an error of less than 1 in a thousand is enough to allow.

Okay, that makes more sense.

:> I therefore did not assume that a form of birur that can be matir WRT
:> agunah would necessarily be use to declare someone a mamzeir, since the
:> former runs with the general trend, and the latter against it

: Once you assume that DNA is quasy faultless, it equals certainty. You no 
: longer can claim that there is a reasonable interpretation of the presence of 
: the bo'el's DNA in the child.

(Discussion of IVF etc... deleted.)

Not really applicable. You put it that lehatir agunah, being able to
raise a 1:1000 doubt is enough to permit. For most dinim, it isn't.
And for DNA use in proving another bo'el, one needs a comparable level
of certainty -- but in the opposite direction.

Saying DNA can open up a 1:1000 doubt doesn't mean it can produce a
999:1000 level of certainty. DNA test reliability could be assumed to
be anywhere in between.

IOW, by agunah we're saying that the test is accurate more often than
one in a thoudand. By mamzeirus would we have to say it isn't wrong even
one time in a thousand. Very different claims.

Tir'u baTov!
-mi

-- 
Micha Berger             Our greatest fear is not that we're inadequate,
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