The story of 14 year old Ahmed Muhammed of Irving, Texas is well known by now. He brought a homemade bomb to his school that his science teacher mistook for a clock and went kaboom.
No, wait. That didn't happen.
It was his homemade clock that his science (engineering, to be precise) teacher mistook for a bomb and went kaboom. Yes, the 'going kaboom' part is true in the metaphorical sense. You know, like when you hit the roof or go ballistic and such. Anyhow, the bomb squad was called like it usually is during a bomb scare/threat. The school was evacauted, getting all other non-terrorist students and staff to safety. And only Ahmed was left alone tied to a chair with his time bomb surrounded by six masked men with metal detectors handling the explosive tactfully.
Scratch that. None of that happened either.
Just the cops were called, and the bomb was neatly placed first in the room with the boy, then, in the car with the boy. All the while being surrounded by staff and police in ordinary police gear. I'm guessing they must've been a bunch of really jihadist style people who couldn't care less for explosive devices, and fearlessly paraded around a potential 'bomb'. The school wasn't evacuated either, for the record.
After all was checked and done, Ahmed was sent home and somehow suspended too for making a clock. Because that's what you do to bright and curious students who blatantly show a love for science. Because it's still the dark ages where Ahmed goes to school.
However, in the White House, the President was having none of this. He tweeted, admiring Ahmed's clock, and asking him to bring it over to the White House as well. Obviously, one just can't have enough clocks at the Oval, can they? Jokes aside, that single tweet shut all criticism of the boy and the clock. That's power!
Mr. President wasn't the only one to notice Ahmed's capacity for doing good. Dear God, yes, good! Hot shots like Mark Zuckerberg, Hillary Clinton, people from his dream school, NASA, Mars, the Galatic Alliance and the media have shown tremendous support for his creativity. Of course, the rest of us nice Americans weren't far behind.
From handcuffs and a 3-day suspension to invitation to MIT plus amazing support from all over the country – Ahmed's story is one incredible incident that we certainly were starving for. It did not end tragically but exposed the pretty side of people in the end. This is the kind of thing that restores one's faith in humanity, that reassures us that we can change this world for the better and that, although, there will always be those who will hate but then there will always be those who kick that hate hard in the teeth.
The way Ahmed was handled by his school raised valid doubts regarding the racist sentiment of the culture he lives in. Fellow Muslims and fellow human beings who still think with their minds were right to be angry and voice their concerns.
However, the support he received trumped all that hate, in my humble opinion.
On desi forums, some folks went as far as to blame Americans for being lowlifes for hating on a Muslim boy. That Obama was trying to cover up the follies of his countrymen by soothing the ruffles of blah blah blah by inviting him to the White House and blah. Of course, the expletives that follow such outbursts are legendary.
Thing is, the boy himself is an American. He is one of Obama's countrymen. And you don't cover up stories that are already out there by responding to them on Twitter. A little common sense can go a long way.
There was also the school's side of the story: the current threat to America from terrorism, and the security measures that every school must apply, and the cops want unusual activities to be reported, hence, this will not be the last case we hear.
Right. I'm worried too about terrorists who show up with guns at schools, theaters, malls, parks, places of worship. So, how about we talk gun control as well, yes? And if you're going to say a responsible gun owner keeps the gun locked and yadda yadda then what good would that gun be to keep when you have a moron shooting 500 bullets a second at you? Also, I'm not very amused when I hear idiots asking presidential candidates for recipes to 'get rid' of Muslims. I see that as asking for a recipe for ethnic cleansing. How very Boko Haram of that guy to think so.
The candidate himself was worthless for not handling the question well so here's my answer: You can't get rid of Muslims. Muslims are here to stay. You made that decision when you went over to their lands and disturbed their peace and culture. They are here because you were there. Deal with it. Sip some beer and eat a hot dog and be nice to ALL thy neighbors and clockmakers.
It is said that Newton was kicked out by his teacher too because he didn't understand the sh*t that kid talked about. If that is how legends are made, so be it. An apple for Newton. A clock for Ahmed.
Know this, more clocks shall be made!