This one goes in the “WTF!?” file. Air Arabia, a discount carrier operating out of the United Arab Emirates (the good guys, if you remember the recent port security foofooraw), has an ad campaign using characters that will look really, really familiar to regular viewers of Comedy Central. Except for minor details like dress and facial hair, that is.

Tony Fox, an executive vice president at Comedy Central, was a little nonplussed to hear about Air Arabia’s marketing strategy. “While I’m not a copyright expert,” he said, “I don’t know how we could have legal recourse for something that looks a lot like a ‘South Park’ character but actually isn’t.”

Me, I’m a little nonplussed too. Are these guys mocking us? Expressing solidarity with the West in some highly subtle manner? I don’t know whether Air Arabia should get a civilized response”’a high five and “Very clever!” or words to that effect”’or whether we should respond like the more retrograde Muslims. You know: rioting like a cageful of weasels on crystal meth, with a lot of pointless casualties and collateral property damage. Really, who can say what’s appropriate?

These wily Muslims. Our simple Western ways are no match for their sophisticated nuance.