Happy Eid al-Adha!

The Associated Press, my favorite kind of press, reports that residents of Baghdad packed the capital's parks and amusement rides on Saturday, taking advantage of a lull in violence and the Islamic feast of Eid al-Adha to venture out of their homes. Eid al-Adha, or Feast of Sacrifice, lasts for three days and commemorates Ibraham's (Abraham) willingness to obey God by sacrificing his son. Muslims believe the son to be Ishmael rather than Isaac as told in the Old Testament. Ishmael is considered the forefather of the Arabs.

And now that we know what Eid al-Adha is, let us re-examine our terms: A "lull" in violence for residents in Baghdad would include a suicide car bomb exploding at a checkpoint manned by Iraqi army and police in the western Baghdad neighborhood of Ghazaliyah Saturday afternoon, killing four people and wounding another six. And on the southern outskirts of the capital, a roadside bomb wounded five bystanders near a hospital in the town of Madin, police said. It was unclear what the target was.

I suppose the reason to celebrate Eid al-Adha is the clarity of purpose. God told Ibraham to kill his son, and it was clear what, or whom, the target was. Those were the good old days.