Don't Offend The One: Sharing $3 Obama Bill Earns Mayor More Negative Attention

The mayor of Greeley has some issues of his own, but sharing a satirical $3 Obama bill with students is apparently too much:

Greeley Mayor Ed Clark, a former police officer who also is the head of security at the University Schools charter school, said today that he has apologized to the family of a student that he showed the bill to.

"I apologized to the family," Clark said. "I think I'll leave it where it is."

Clark did say that he showed the bill to students in the school cafeteria Nov. 14 when one of them asked if had an extra dollar for lunch.

According to the Greeley Tribune, the fake $3 bill is emblazoned with an image of Obama wearing a Middle Eastern headdress Clark describes as a "prince's hat." He showed it to a girl, who then showed it to classmates.

He took the bill back from the student and has since discarded it, he said.

"It was political satire," Clark said Saturday. "I'm not going to talk about it. I've got to go. sir."

Clark's other actions are certainly more newsworthy than an ill-advised sharing of fake $3 bills.

In fact, it is not clear why this has become a story at all, other than the fact that President-elect Barack Obama is mentioned in relation to some funny money not dissimilar to other fake bills that have been circulating as far back as the Clinton years (I remember $3 Clinton bills in high school).

Will any perceived slight--critism, satire, parody--to the person of our President-elect and soon-to-be inaugurated President now be considered newsworthy, or more importantly, the subject of public scrutiny and even punishment?