I may be the only person on Monday morning that didn't already know that Osama Bin Laden had been killed. I have a two year old- I go to bed early and watch a lot of cartoons with her, so when my mom came over Monday morning at 7:30 practically bouncing off the walls asking if we had seen the news, we replied "what news?"
She seemed happy so it couldn't be a terrorist attack or natural disaster. My mind raced trying to guess what she was referring to. Did they announce that the apartment complex near her house that is notorious for drug deals and home invasions would be leveled to make room for a new park? Did Pete Rose get reinstated?
"We got Osama Bin Laden, the seals got 'em last night". My brother, who is graduating from the Naval Academy in a few weeks called my mom at 2am to share the news and explain that when word broke, every midshipman in Annapolis flooded out of their dorms and out into the streets. They chanted and marched over to the commandants house to wake him up.
I don't have any moral qualms about executing this guy. I have heard people complaining that its not right to celebrate any one's death, no matter who they are. That makes sense, especially given how reserved he was after murdering 3,000 Americans while they were at work on September 11th. Give me a break.
Although I am not an Obama fan by any stretch, I have to give credit where credit is due. It was not an easy decision to send seals in, but the outcome was far better than simply bombing the complex and risking collateral damage. I can even understand why they gave him a burial at sea. I know it made a lot of people mad, but it was the right thing to do to send a message that this was not an attack on the Muslim religion, but simply this man. I also agree with not releasing the photos. We don't to glorify what happened and certainly don't need to give remaining terrorists fodder for another attack.
In short, I am freaking thrilled that this man is dead and gone.
I wasn't a fan of not having evidence but after reading your opinion on the whole Osama issue i kinda understand why they didnt take any pictures. And i guess people never really see it from the muslims standpoint and the fact that its a tradition to bury a persons body within 24hrs of their death.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you wrote about the conflicted feelings surrounding this event. My guess is that if he had been buried anywhere on land, that area would have been a potential target.
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