Pop quiz time! The antonym of “Arab” is: a) decent b) family man c) citizen d) all of the above. If you, like John McCain, answered “d,” pat yourself on the back. You’ve just earned yourself some praise from unexpected corners — including much of the liberal blogosphere — for finally reining in the vitriol of your most rabid supporters. In [...]

I’ve never been much of a comics fan, but I was much impressed with Broken Mystic’s two-part blog series, “Female, Muslim, and Mutant: A Critique of Muslim Women in Comic Books.” The first entry talks about the portrayal of the X-Men’s “Dust” character, an Afghan heroine introduced to the series in 2002. The second contrasts this [...]

So two Muslims in headscarves were barred from appearing on camera at an Obama event in Michigan. Obama's spokesperson promptly apologized and said this was the decision of individual volunteers, not indicative of campaign policy. The women asked for a personal apology from Obama himself. I've been wondering when this was going to become an issue.

In “King Corn,” directors Aaron Woolf, Curt Ellis and Ian Cheney move to Iowa to plant and harvest one acre of corn, in an attempt to learn more about this ubiquitous crop’s role in the American food supply. It will air tonight on PBS on Independent Lens, 10 p.m. EST. I saw the movie two weeks [...]