Get Out Much?

US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel has expressed regret to a professor of Indian descent after he appeared to jokingly ask if the academic was a member of the Taliban.

[...]

After discussing prospects for talks with the Taliban insurgency at the event and waiting for another question, Hagel pointed to the back of the hall, and said: "OK, so who has a - way up in the back there. You're not a member of the Taliban are you?"

  

The guy should have asked Hagel how Hagel got permission to leave his cave.

Hagel's spokesman said on Friday that the off-hand remark, which came after a speech by Hagel at the University of Nebraska on Wednesday, was not meant to refer to anyone in the audience or to the professor's heritage.

Oh, no. Of course not. How could anyone have thought it?

Hagel only asked the guy directly if he were a member of the Taliban. How can that not be meant to refer to him? Oh, by ME, you don’t mean ME, you mean some Talib in Afghanistan.

Hagel's apparent attempt at humour appeared to fall flat, judging by the long pause that followed, according to a video of the event broadcast by the Pentagon channel.

"This was an off the cuff remark not directed at anyone in particular in the audience, and he recognises that even though it was a joke that it was perhaps off-key," press secretary George Little told reporters on Friday.

Perhaps.

"I would emphasise it was completely unintentional and not directed at anyone in particular."

Yeah. Yeah. We got it. In fact, so did the professor. Especially after a phone call from Hagel.

"I was able to ask a question, and I thoroughly enjoyed hearing his answer. Before I rose to ask a question, there was apparently some confusion that did not involve me," his statement said.