Is it really the end of the story?

Osama bin Laden is dead. The figurehead to many of us of all things bad and evil about the world has passed into whatever afterlife awaits him. It is the end of a chapter, but is probably not the end of the book. Why do I feel this way? Probably because I find the reaction to his death somewhat unsettling. I can't stress enought how I abhor the actions of and inspired by Osama bin Laden, the terrorist attacks of September 11 and subsequent warfare. However while on the one hand I can understand the jubilation and reaction, especially of those in America who were directly affected by tragedy, I found the scenes just too reminiscent of those many dislike and rant against from the extremists in Islamic countries. In the tit-for-tat world of punch and counter-punch, I doubt the tale of terrorism will end with Osama bin Laden's death. However that's just my personal opinion.

How did we get to this point? If sometimes the events get muddled in your mind head into your local library and grab one of the many books and other resources to help you get a fix on where it all started. Here are a few examples.

Osama bin Laden A keyword search in our catalogue results in almost 200 resources including biographies of the man, his family and how he became leader of Al Queda.

Terrorism There are thousands of resources ranging from children's non-fiction to adult, books to DVD's and also our digital resources, explaining terrorism and it's effect on the world we live in.

Islam When many people in the world think of the Islamic religion they think of extremists and the acts of terrorists. But the reality is that this is definitely not true of all Muslims. To give yourself a more balanced view, have a look at one of these resources.

September 11 For many of us where this all really began. The event and how it has impacted the years since can be found in the resources at this link.

Peace The eternal optimist in me is the reason why I have included this link to resources in the library. If the power of the words and pictures in some of these books can help make a difference then there is worth in the place of libraries in society for sharing them with you.

From the words of a 14 year old Yugoslav boy (and the title of a book reviewed for Anzac Day on this blog) I dream of Peace