I knew you were going somewhere with this, but I wasn't sure where until I clicked the "read more" link...

And I have to say that you hit the nail perfectly on the head with that one!

Maybe you should file this under sarcasm. (That's how I read it.)

I'm sure the perpetrator saw it as an act of protest or civil(?) disobeidance, not the act of terrorism it was, or can be prosecuted for. It's not the bomber's fault, it's the recruiters for soiling the perfect, utopian environment of Times Square.

I knew exactly where he was going with it :)

And that's how the Weathermen started as well. Wonder how long it'll take the new generation of '68ers (shall we call them '08ers?) to graduate to truly bloody terrorism.

I have been at work all day, I didn't see anyone else making the connection...

38 years ago today.

I think it was payback for that marine throwing that puppy off the cliff.

Excellent link DoubleU.

Yeah what's the big deal. It's not like they bombed an abortion clinic or something. Now THAT would be a hate crime.

Fellow Americans,

The recent bombing in Times Square was committed by a CYCLIST. What more evidence do we need? I have always been suspicious of people who get from one place to another on two wheels, as we all have. We should have seen this coming, since the anti-American sentiment among these evil cyclists has been building in recent decades. The time has come to strike back.

I think this points out the clearly inherent dangers that cyclists pose to the freedoms, liberties, and ideals of each and every American.

The particularities of this case do not matter. What we need is action.

We should begin a campaign to detain and deport each and every person who rides a bike in the USA, regardless of their flimsy excuses for such blatant anti-Americanism. We drive Fords and Chevy's for God's sake!

Clearly, you are either with us, or you ride a bicycle.

I also think that we should begin bike-tapping immediately, which will give every American the protection they need from such dangers.

We should also begin a full military assault on any and all communities that harbor these peddlers of fear and hatred. All bike shops should be raided, and all bike manufacturers should either be eliminated or run back to France, where they belong. We should freeze all assets from any bike-related organization, and we should all proceed with vigilance. If any of you good Americans even sees a person riding a bike, contact the Department of Homeland Security immediately.

There is no need for subtleties in these black and white times. There are no gray areas when it comes to such acts. We cannot afford to stand by, as those cowardous liberals do, while more cyclists attempt to destroy our nation. There is no need for any 'investigation,' as the damage has been done. The cyclists were given the choice between good and evil, and they have sided with evil.

We will hunt down and destroy every cyclist in order to restore freedom to the American streets.

God Bless, and enjoy.

Walker N. Freedom

Bureau Chief,
The Department of Pedestrian Democratic Affairs

/satire, (for those who weren't sure).

...nothing is more fun than blending generalizations and sarcasm in order to make a political point, eh? And since this post is about comical political characterizations, I figured, why the hell not?

Is humor bipartisan? We shall see...

;)

Maybe if what you wrote was funny, we'd know, ryan.

SPQR:

Oh come on. Not even the bad puns? I thought you guys liked sarcasm.

OK, ryan a, as a satire of the FDR administration, its not bad.

SPQR:

'Not bad' huh? See, I'm moving on up...

Barney, you're damn moron.

Here is my take on Ryan's logic: Hamas and their supporters celebrated the killing of Jewish religious students today (many are teenagers). Hamas is even using Palestinian women and children as human shields. So Israel cannot take any action to wipe out Hamas. You cannot make generaliztion and you need to distinguish between Hamas and other Palestinians. In other words, that is liberal nuance that would allow the killing of women and children to go on without consequences (to the terrorists of course). If another holocaust happens, it may help end the conflict in any case. Someone can satirize the liberal nuance for me here. If Israel is wiped off the map, that would help the peace process!

"Barney, you're damn moron."

Exactly... he is BarneyMORON!

At least Barney didn't toss a link out from the DailyKOS with a pic of Bush holding the bomb and cheney lighting it.

Or maybe he knows it was Boris and Natasha trying to blow up "Moose and Squirrel" so he figured he'd lay off of the Bush stuff today.

ryan a:
Is humor bipartisan? We shall see...

If 'cyclist' was an essential characteristic of the bomber, it might have been humorous. Unfortunately, it seems that the ability to be humorous isn't bypartisan. So sorry... :)

Maybe Barney is celebrating the yeshiva massacre as a revenge for the marine throwing the puppy off the cliff!

"Only by addressing these root causes"

I guess being douchebag and an asshole doesn't count as root cause....

Mike:

If 'cyclist' was an essential characteristic of the bomber, it might have been humorous. Unfortunately, it seems that the ability to be humorous isn't bypartisan. So sorry... :)

Mike, it's a little jab at the tendency to overgeneralize that seems a little popular around these parts sometimes, that's all.

Being a 'cyclist' is about as relevant as some of the HUGE over-generalizations that are thrown around all of this blog at times. That's the joke. And you're right, when it all comes down to it, it's really NOT very funny.

Glad you recognized that.

LAI:

If you want to apply this to the Palestinian case, then I suppose I would think that it might be important to prosecute the groups that actually commit the crimes, and to try to avoid lumping any and all Palestinian into some massive category.

Yes, this is more difficult, but it also might be fairly important. Especially since Hamas goes around killing OTHER Palestinians. Maybe it would be good to realize the fact that they aren't just one massive group that acts and thinks the same.

That's the subtle joke with the dumb 'cyclist' satire--as if we can simply label an entire group of people based upon the known attributes of a few (the bomber was a cyclist, therefore we should go after all cyclists). That kind of logic has been a little too common during the past 8 years, IMO.

Instead, maybe we should prosecute the specific criminals, and avoid throwing everyone else in with them. Just an idea.

You cannot make generaliztion and you need to distinguish between Hamas and other Palestinians. In other words, that is liberal nuance that would allow the killing of women and children to go on without consequences (to the terrorists of course).

No. Not at all. What you have to realize is that we are not talking about some monolithic social group. They are not all one, and pretending they are doesn't really do much.

Hamas and other organizations do some terrible things, and they should be held responsible. But they do not represent the entire spectrum of the Palestinian people. It makes sense to me that we keep an open mind about that. And that has nothing to do with letting terrorists who kill innocent people off the hook.

Don't forget that those terrorists are often terrorizing OTHER Palestinians as well.

But really, this was more of a general satire of the way that some people react to these kinds of things, as compared to Jay Tea's somewhat humorous characterization of the way that liberals react.

But if I have to explain it...

True enough, ryan a. I mean, it's not like Hamas and Fatah fight over the credit, or that they are the rightful governing parties of the Palestinians, chosen in free and honest elections, or that the Palestinians hold massive public celebrations when these events occur...

Oh, that's right, that's precisely what happened.

If John McCain can be held liable because a supporter of his says anti-Catholic things, or Barack Obama is called upon to denounce and reject Louis Farrakhan, then why can't we hold the Palestinian people responsible for these terrorist acts? They seem eager to take the "credit" -- both individually and through their chosen government.

J.

Jay Tea:

You're right in many ways. There are many people over there who are most definitely part of the problem. And they need to be held responsible for what they are doing.

I understand the fact that Fatah and Hamas were elected, but I am not quite sure what kind of democracy they represent. Sometimes it sounds like they are two highly violent parties that have taken control, and I question how 'representative' they really are.

I have read a few things of late that lead me to think that there are other faces to the Palestinian people, specifically the Palestinian citizens within Israel.

By no means do I suggest that crimes of murder be downplayed, or that people should not be held responsible. They should be. I'm just arguing against holding the wrong people responsible--namely those who are caught somewhere in between.

...then why can't we hold the Palestinian people responsible for these terrorist acts? They seem eager to take the "credit" -- both individually and through their chosen government.

Because they are not just one big group that all thinks and acts the same. We need to be as specific as we can, as is possible. If we blame them all--whether or not they are responsible--then we alienate people who may not be sympathetic to what Hamas and others are doing in their name. And there are great possibilities, I think, in not glossing over these details.

That's all.

Ryan A,

Try reworking your original satire into something like "this crime is proof that we need bicycle control laws; maybe we need a 30 day waiting period before buying a bike...".