Meet Bat Ye'or, an author who's believed to have influenced the man accused of the Oslo murders. We look at how much other people's ideas play a role in determining the actions of an extremist.

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Today's guest host was Jim Brown.

Part One of The Current

Satire

It's Thursday, July 28th.

A Minnesota grandmother spent 12 days in a Winnipeg jail after Canadian border guards mistook a jar of used motor oil in her minivan for heroin.

Currently, the Canadian Border Services Agency clarified that it was no mistake, but actually part of the government's get-tough-on-engine-lubricant strategy.

This is The Current.

Ideological Architects - Bat Ye'or

Whatever the clinical state of his mind, the man accused of the Oslo rampage gave a lot of thought to what he believed to be the problems of Europe. Anders Breivik wrote 1500 pages to explain himself and his motives in what he calls, his manifesto. It draws heavily on the work of many right-wing authors and anti-immigration blogs -- authors that include Canadian columnist Mark Steyn along with the Dutch leader of the anti-Muslim and anti-immigration Freedom Party.

Another cited by Breivik is Gisele Littman, who writes under the name Bat Ye'or. She is the author of a number of books including Eurabia: The Euro-Arab axis. Bat Ye'or joined us from Geneva.

Ideological Architects - Pam Chamberlain

Certainly, most of the writers, academics and philosophers quoted by the Oslo suspect are appalled their words found their way into his thoughts. Listeners of an older generation may remember that the song lyrics of the Beatles once inspired the homicidal followers of Charles Manson.

Writers are can be influential... But should they be held responsible for the actions of their readers? To talk about that we were joined by Pam Chamberlain, interim director of research at Political Research Associates. She was in Boston.

Related Links:

• Eurabia' opponents scramble for distance from anti-Muslim murderer By Doug Saunders - Globe & Mail
• Anders Behring Breivik and the 'Anti-Jihadist' Blogosphere By Conor Friedersdorf - The Atlantic

Other segment from today's show:

• Letters: Oslo Massacre & Somali Famine