Larry David New York Times Op-Ed, “My Son, The Terrorist,” Received Criticisms

The Larry David New York Times op-ed on the Boston bomber’s mom reaction reaction that her sons were the terrorists is inviting a critical reaction from a number of media people. Gothamist, the hyper-local New York City blog with a loyal cult following in the city, thinks the timing is slightly off.

According to Gothamist, it’s kind of strange for Larry David to write a comedic op-ed about the event. The piece is focused on Boston Marathon bomb suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s relationship with his mother. They said that the op-ed is really more of a commentary about delusional parents and how they can make any excuse for their children, no matter what they do. The New York Times write-up plays off Zubeidat Tsarnaev’s insistence that her son is innocent, or that America is to blame for his alleged acts.

The blog mentioned that they think it’s a bit weird for Larry David to personalize the situation in a comedic bit.

David, in his op-ed, introduces the analogy of how his mother would defend him in such a situation. He wrote, “Despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary, Zubeidat Tsarnaev, mother of the Boston bombing suspects, has defiantly proclaimed her sons’ innocence in several interviews. I can think of only one other person who would take such a stance...”

He proceeds to portray a reporter interviewing his mom on him being a suspect, and his mom defending him in sometimes the most ridiculous ways.

Though the op-ed piece was made purely for humor and fun, comments poured in saying it was insensitive and in bad timing.