'Gee, Thanks, Mom--Now Who DOES Want to Blow Me Up?'

Speaking of instructional materials on Islam, Shawn Macomber at NationalReview Online brings news of

a coloring book designed to “counter the terrifying messages transmitted in the name of the ‘War on Terror.’” To this end, readers are introduced to 12 individuals of Arab or Persian extraction by Naeem, a young keffiyeh-wearing Brooklynite who cheerily announces at the outset, “I blow up tires on my bicycle, but I don’t want to blow you up!”

Some are luminaries such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (“He had a shot called the ‘sky hook’ that no one could stop. . . . He doesn’t want to blow you up!”), anti-American intellectual Tariq Ramadan (“He wants to debate ideas! He doesn’t want to blow you up!”), and rapper Nas (“ . . . people said he ‘blew up!’ That means he became popular very quickly”). Others are everyday people with unfortunate names like deejay Jose Padilla (“He doesn’t want to blow you up. He wants to make you dance!), demolitionist Imaan bin Laden (“She needs to blow up buildings for her job, but she doesn’t want to blow you up!), and young Osama (“I’m not a terrorist! I’m a boy who is very good at science!”). This is certainly a more uplifting concept than, say, I Do Want to Blow You Up, even if the FBI already provides just such a handy guide.

DU has been unable to confirm rumors from within the publishing industry that sequels to I Don't Want To Blow You Up! are being rushed into print, two of them with the suggested working titles: I Don't Want to Wipe Your Country Off the Map!, and I Don't Want To Saw Yor Head Off In Front of a Video Camera!