Well said

Obama says New Yorker insulted Muslim Americans

'You know, there are wonderful Muslim Americans all across the country who are doing wonderful things,' the presidential candidate told CNN's Larry King. 'And for this to be used as sort of an insult, or to raise suspicions about me, I think is unfortunate. And it's not what America's all about.'

If you've managed not to see the cover of the current New Yorker magazine, it was a supposed attempt at satire that as far as I'm concerned fell like a dud. In it, Barack Obama is seen in traditional Muslim attire in the Oval Office with his wife Michelle, who is in combat fatigues, an Afro, and an automatic rifle. On the wall hangs a picture of Osama bin Laden. They are doing a fist bump whilst a flag burns in the fireplace.

The magazine says that it was making fun of the misconceptions about Obama, and that it has to be taken in context (which seems a little odd, because if you look at the issue, the main article about Obama wasn't about those misconceptions, but rather an 'inside' look at how Obama became a 'pol'. I suppose the context could be the general use of satirical cartoons on the magazine's cover, but just because something often uses satire, doesn't make every attempt good satire.)

Now granted, the majority of Americans are probably satirically illiterate, and certainly there are those who say that those offended simply can't take a joke. But an artist friend of mine, who brought it to my attention, said he could easily think of a couple of ways the cover might have work, if drawn differently, and I agree.

I suspect had the media not taken off with it, little would have been made of it, because the ignorant people who believe such misconceptions most likely don't read the New Yorker. But many will look at the cover now and think, 'well, yes, that's where Obama's heading', which is unfortunate.

Now, in the grand scheme of things, this will blow over and become a minor footnote in history. But I have to admit, I'm one of the ones who just didn't see the humour in that cartoon. And I think Obama has treated the whole affair well.