Lowe's is so very, very sowwy about pulling ads from All-American Muslim

If you are a public figure in this country and you manage to do something that offends a mess o' people, you can apologize by: a) issuing a heartfelt statement of contrition, authored by former members of Tiger Woods' publicity team, b) appearing on a daytime talk show to beg the American people for forgiveness, or c) flipping everyone the bird by saying you're sorry for offending them, but wha-ever, 'cause you do what you want, bitches. It seems that Lowe's Hardware Store has taken the latter route by issuing a semi-apology for pulling its ads from TLC's All American Muslim. In the statement, Lowe's says they're sorry for having "managed to make some people very unhappy."

The controversy began after the retail giant pulled its ads from All American Muslim in response to complaints from the conservative Florida Family Association, which claimed that the show "riskily hides the Islamic agenda's clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values." The show, which premiered on TLC last month, follows five Muslim-American families from Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit with a large Arab-American population. According to the clips on the show's website, the series mostly shows cast members doing things like getting their nails done and coaching high school football practices and roller-blading (actually, they may be right about that last one, 'cause roller-blading kinda sucks, but the other stuff is, like, totally OK).

Unsurprisingly, instead of giving Lowe's a medal and a congratulatory slap on the back for being a shining example of American patriotism, some folks got kind of pissed off about the company's blatant Islamophobia. California State Senator Ted Lieu told the AP last Sunday he was considering calling for a boycott if the retail giant didn't issue a public apology, calling their decision to pull advertising "un-American" and "naked religious bigotry." Having apparently decided they prefer making money to hating people based on their religious beliefs, Lowe's did just that; however, Lieu says the apology doesn't go far enough, and he is considering drafting a senate resolution publicly condemning the company's actions.