Amina Arraf has seen a quick rise to fame. Blogging pseudonymously, as Amina Abdullah, she writes about politics, the recent uprising, and being a lesbian in Syria.

In short, no central banker can be the Oracle of Delphi.

This article by Jane Arraf originally appeared on PRI.org on July 19, 2016, and is republished here as part of a content sharing agreement.

Since reports emerged that a Syrian blogger named Amina Arraf, known as Gay Girl in Damascus had been seized by authorities on Monday, 6 June 2011, serious doubts have surfaced that the blogger may not be who she claims.

Update (June 9, 2011) Since this post was published questions have been raised about the true identity of Amina Arraf . The photo below proved to be of a Croatian woman who lives in London.

In short, no central banker can be the Oracle of Delphi. Indeed, many academic economists believe that central bankers could perfectly well be replaced with a computer programmed to implement a simple rule that adjusts interest rates mechanically in response to output and inflation.