You’ll never see a better demonstration of the twisted ideology at the heart of the New York Times than Steve Erlanger’s eulogy for the Islamic Jihad suicide bomber who tried to commit mass murder in Tel Aviv yesterday: Into the West Bank Abyss: From Student to Suicide Bomber. (Hat tip: Mediacrity.)

As usual, the family and friends of the bomber pretend to be shocked and distraught, and as usual, the New York Times buys it.

“We grew up together here, we studied together at the same university, that’s why I’m so shocked,” said Muhammad, also 21, who like Sami’s other friends and some of his relatives would not give his full name. “He was known as a simple person, with a good sense of humor,” he added, wiping tears into his gelled hair. “We didn’t know of any ties to a political movement.”

They may or may not be shocked, but one thing is certain: they’re proud of the monster.

Sami’s brother Samer came out, his eyes red, to tell journalists that the family would not speak of what had happened, and said, “This is an honor, not just to the family of Antar, but to the whole neighborhood.”

Israel, the West and the Palestinian Authority will condemn Sami Antar’s act as terrorism, the effort to kill innocent civilians. His neighbors and family call it a tragedy, but also resistance, struggle and martyrdom. The abyss here is as steep as the hills above Nablus.

Near the door of the Antar apartment, affixed to the wall, was a small poster, nicely printed. “Confident in God’s victory,” it read, and it bore the logo of the Islamic Group, which it described as “the student framework of the Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine.” No one could remember when it was put up. Some suggested that Sami had done it when he left in the morning; some suggested that it had gone up only later. None of his friends seemed to know, or at least admitted they knew, that Sami was even a member of the group.

“The family is completely in shock,” said a cousin, who identified himself only as Abu Muhammad, or Muhammad’s father. “Even his brothers are shocked. They can’t believe this story.”

Asked what he might have said to Sami, if he had known of his plans, Abu Muhammad said: “I’m not at all political. I only live to bring food to my family.”

Assem, another friend and relative, has a baby face, which ran with tears. He hugged a woman in black. “He’s a martyr,” she cried.

“But he’s gone,” Assem replied. His cellphone rang. He answered in English: “I’m sorry, I can’t come now, because one of my friends became a martyr.”

Sick, sick, sick.