Let's Go Fly A Kite!

Don't get any crazy notions in your head about carrying a concealed weapon or making napalm in your basement if you live in Pakistan. That kind of stuff can get you into real hot water. This would also be the case for flying a kite. A provincial minister warned kite-flyers this week that any who cause injury or death with string made from metal or coated with glass could be tried under anti-terrorism laws.
Ouch. I suppose I can understand why anybody who caused injury or death with any toy or household implement would get into serious trouble, but anti-terrorism? I've got two words for these folks: Lawn Darts. And they better not catch you running with scissors, either.
So, what is all the fuss about? Every year, Pakistani media report dozens of deaths and injuries caused by kite flying, mainly of children and motorcyclists whose throats are sometimes cut by metal or glass-coated string. "It is a matter of concern that a healthy sport is being turned into a game of death," the official APP news agency quoted Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi as saying Tuesday.
Game of death? That sounds like what my eighth grade gym teacher used to have us play on rainy days. It involved flattened soccer balls, pubescent boys and an enclosed space. Feel free to make up your own rules, since I don't recall that there were any.
Still, the Pakistani government isn't all about being a buzz-kill. They have allowed a fifteen day window during which kite-flying is permitted to coincide with this month's traditional kite-flying festival of Basant. Some Islamist groups have staged protests in the past week after newspapers reported several deaths caused by kite-flying, denouncing the activity as un-Islamic.
Now, if we can just get a cartoon of Charlie Brown flying his kite in a Danish newspaper, we have the makings of a real international incident.