Bombed in Boston
In April, the Massachusetts-based Tsarnaev brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan allegedly set off a bomb at the Boston Marathon, killing three, injuring hundreds. They were Muslims, as some pundits speculated, but not the sort of Muslims we expected, coming from Chechnya, not Iran or the Arab world. Tamerlan was killed in the chase but the story of his jihadi radicalization proved fascinating, and the developing story gave us other characters with other lessons on integration. Ruslan Tsarni was everyone's favorite pro-American, outspoken Chechen uncle. Maret Tsarnaeva was the crazy, conspiratorial aunt that you try to avoid at family get-togethers. An Islamic burial for Tamerlan was finally secured after many imams balked.
