Accidental Blogger

I first saw this peculiar story more than two weeks ago, in a local South Asian publication while eating at an Indian restaurant. Pakistan’s notorious madrassas are breeding grounds of Islamic fundamentalism, its once vibrant universities are becoming more like those madrassas and there have been efforts to "Quranize" the college physics curriculum (attention, Kansas). Instead of correcting the alarming deterioration in their public education, Pakistan’s curriculum planners, like ignoramuses everywhere, spend their time and energy in paranoid pursuits. One example – looking for hidden messages buried inside prescribed poetry. The government is going to delete an objectionable poem from school text books. I agree that the poem should be removed but only because of its atrocious literary value. Also puzzling is the source of the anonymous poetic propaganda. Does the Pentagon employ bad poets? Or could this be part of Karen Hughes’ bumbling charm offensive in the Islamic world?

"Pakistan’s government is to remove a poem from a school textbook after it emerged the first letters of each line spelt out "President George W Bush".

The anonymous poem, called The Leader, appeared in a recent English-language course book for 16 year-olds. Critics say it praises Mr Bush. Its rhyming couplets describe someone "solid as steel, strong in his faith".

Officials cannot explain how the poem entered the curriculum. Pupils are being told to ignore it.

The textbook is due to be reprinted next year."

Here is the offending verse: