Ambrose Bierce defined "comfort" as "a state of mind produced by contemplation of a neighbor's uneasiness." This may be why some people are going to be breaking out the party favors on the anniversary of the September tragedy, to whit: Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed. Based in London until British authorities get around to deporting him, Bakri will be presiding over a celebration to be held at Finsbury Park mosque in north London, called "Sept. 11, 2001: A Towering Day in History." One hopes a bored gang of skinheads will show up to put the shoe leather to him.

So who is this joker, anyway? He heads a council calling for the implementation of Sharia law in Britain, so you figure he's a frustrated fringe radical. He also goes by the name Omar Bakri Fostok, has been connected by U.S. and British intelligence to bin Laden and the Britain-based group Al-Muhajiroun "is dedicated to the establishment of a global Muslim state." Oh, and his hobby is issuing his fatwa-of-the-week. Mostly a lot of "death to the infidel" stuff, you know:

O' Muslims, this Fatwa is a call to fight against Israeli forces, their government, Israeli Embassies, military airports and jets etc... as they are legitimate targets for Muslims wherever they may be. The divine evidence for this from the Qur'an is that Allah says: "And kill them wherever you meet them and turn them out from where they have turned you out." However, It is prohibited to target any non-military or innocent Jews because this would be considered to be murder and therefore aggression against the sanctity of Human life.

Bard Behind Bars
The Raven has always felt that a lot of anti-social behavior could be addressed by exposing at-risk youth to classic literature. The problem is getting them to sit down and read it. This isn't the case with Curt Tofteland, director of the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, who also heads a theater program at Luther Luckett Correctional Complex in LaGrange, Kentucky. "I would do something for victims, but they're not in one place. I've got perpetrators in one place, and I can work with them." This story testifies to the transformative power of language and art.

Sammie Byron, inmate: "The death scene with Othello and Desdemona was almost a reenactment of the crime I committed."
Lavassa Anderson, inmate [on playing Laertes]: "As far as being stupid and treacherous, I guess I can relate to him in that way."

Very thought-provoking stuff here.

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