i think that "b" option can easily get missed, especially if the whole of a group you care passionately about engaging with is largely composed of people who are ignoring you because of social position.

for me i sorta feel sorry for the guy. i can see very much how things could get to the point they got with him, it's just a shame that he couldn't. i think he thought outside the box just enough to get him into trouble but not enough to turn the idea into something marvelous.

if the whole thing had been written with the intent that one day people would find out it was him and it was a commentary on both the real-life situation, and the peripheral problems that had left him feeling marginalized in the community of activists, it could have been good in more than one way.

in a sense, i think it's still useful tho because it has lots of people talking about it and a lot of the discussion i've seen has been pretty intelligent.

so while it was wrong for him to expose other activists to danger, and to exploit a canadian girl's feelings to create a false relationship with her, on some level this kind of pr about the plight of homosexuals in the muslim world probably never would have happened. suddenly, it's something everyone is talking/thinking about, and even if it's because of a deception being unmasked, that's still a good thing!

~kat