Theocracy in action

Well, he is a good friend of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. I mean, Khamenei named him as substitute Friday prayer leader, which I gather is a big deal in those parts. And he on the best of terms with Mahmoud 'President' Ahmadinejad, Iran's man with a mandate. So when Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami uses his Friday prayer time to tell the worshipers that he wants protestors to be punished 'ruthlessly and savagely', it's a good bet that somebody has got his back. “I want the judiciary to punish leading rioters firmly and without showing any mercy to teach everyone a lesson.” And I'm guessing that's a lesson that can only be taught once, since al-Jazeera tells us that Khatami wants demonstrators to be charged as 'mohareb', a special designation for those who wage war against God. The penalty for waging war against God, as you might imagine, is death. Stay tuned.