“‘As you can see, the assignment was in no way an attempt to diminish the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Nor was it designed to support the goals of Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations,’ said Rob Schweers, ISU’s director of communications…’This is similar to the vital work being performed in our nation’s diplomatic and intelligence operations, such as the Central Intelligence Agency, or the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research.'”

How grand, except that it is extremely unlikely that such work is actually being done in the CIA or the State Department: in both, the official line is still that Islam is a religion of peace that has nothing whatsoever to do with terrorism. So they can’t really try to enter into the al-Qaeda mindset in any realistic way, because that would involve them trafficking in Islamic terms and concepts.

“Schweers added the assignment is simply an exercise in expanding critical thinking skills and analyzing international events through a ‘different lens.'”

Is that so? Iowa State University is all about critical thinking, even when it involves trying to get into the mindset of a despised group? Is that so? When is the assignment coming to write about the Garland jihad attack from the perspective of those defending the freedom of speech inside the event? ISU would never assign such a thing that would require it to get into the mindset of “Islamophobes” — isn’t that right, Mr. Shweers?

“Students instructed to write essay on 9/11 from terrorists’ perspective,” by Nathan Rubbelke, The College Fix, March 27, 2017: