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5/03/2011

On the cause of celebration


The posting below this is original to this post. I've added this bit in italics because I can see that there are some who perhaps are not as convinced of the reality, or propriety, of recent events as I am and I think I need to explain something.

I am just as disappointed in things we do as anybody else. I have come to realize that the "Ugly American" that no one was ever able to convince me was real, actually is. There are so many respects in which we, as a country and a people, have failed in our relationships with the rest of the world. We can tell ourselves how great we are, but when you start to really LISTEN to what people from the rest of the world say about us, you begin to see a picture that isn't exactly pleasant. But that said, we still do it better - or try to - than anybody else. But I am not going to argue the merits of our country or the lack of merit that may be real. What I AM going to argue is that we, as human beings, citizens of Earth, like any other citizen of Earth, deserve to live without the fear of being blown up by, shot by, poisoned by or targeted by terrorists. Every man, woman and child on Earth deserves that - and those of us who live here on the Earth, who have the strength, knowledge and courage to protect those of our brethren who don't have the same access to resources, are obligated to do what we can. And that is what we are doing.


Do you recall being just a bit put out when you learned, on Sept 12th, 2001, that there had been joy and dancing in the streets across most of the Arab world upon hearing the news of the attack on the U.S. on September 11th? Or, maybe, did it actually draw you to anger?

Do you remember thinking that you couldn't understand how people could be so uncaring, so full of hate, so wrong about us and what we stand for?

Now. Imagine if you will how people in the Arab world - the Muslim world - see OUR celebration of the killing of Osama bin Laden. I think we need to be circumspect in expressing our joy at the man's demise.

That said, I personally feel relief and encouragement at the fact that U.S. intelligence and military assets were able to cooperate and execute the mission that brought the man down. More than that, those who remain in positions of leadership in Al Qaeda and The Taliban have to now know what the price is on their heads - and that the price is going to be paid. If we can find bin Laden, we can find any one of them. We have demonstrated our patience and our persistence - there are no places on Earth where they can run where we won't be able to track them down and bring them - or their bodies - in. The Indian Ocean is broad and deep. There's room enough for a whole BUNCH of terrorists, if that's what it comes to.

There are going to be more deaths, more destruction, in the name of Osama bin Laden. Al Qaeda is not dead. Terrorist cells exist all over the world. They are angry right now. They are angered by the joy we feel at bin Laden' death, just as we were angered by the unjustified joy the Arab world felt in reaction to 9/11. They will retaliate. They will express their hate and contempt for us with renewed vigor. And we will continue to track them, find them, and bring them to one form of justice or another.

Like I said, the Indian Ocean is deep and broad. And there's lots of room for many, many more terrorists.

Bye, bye, bin Laden. If my vision of the afterlife is true, then your Arab ass is roasting right now. Burn, fucker.

If your vision of the afterlife is true, and Allah is as displeased with you as I am, and I hope He is, then I hope all your virgins are spinster hags with vigorous and energetic crabs.

Ndinombethe.

5 comments:

PattiKen said...

We went to visit friends in NZ. At the time, our former president was doing his level best to destroy our economy, violate the constitution, kowtow to big business, and do whatever puppeteers Cheney and Rove told him to do. And he was doing a darn good job of it. I was embarrassed, to be honest. Our NZ friends scoffed at my embarrassment. "Pshaw, you are America. America always pulls it out."

As I was reading your post, what ran through my mind was, "When did this world become one giant shoot-em-up video game?"

Myst_72 said...

Well said Lou

G
xx

Emily/Randomability said...

Well said, Lou.

That is exactly why I didn't post anything on Facebook or Twitter about it.

Big Mark 243 said...

I feel relief that the mission was accomplished but I am unconvinced that it was an even trade. Nor do I think that it discourages anyone from plotting further attacks of terror worldwide.

What we lost in the pursuit of vengenance was far greater that what we gained. There is a term that is used by the intelligence community called 'blowback'. We are doing things in the world as a country that incites others to want to lash out at America.

I wish that it wasn't so. But it is. And despite the sense of relief from the end of this episode, that is all it is, an episode.

*sigh* When are the troops in Afghanistan coming home? And why can't they leave ASAP??

Nan Sheppard said...

It's good, it's sad, I hope we continue to evolve, us humans. I believe that we are. Much of the Arab world is demanding change. Much of the Western world is rethinking the way we live, how much we consume, how much we value our liberty.

The next few months will be interesting. Will big brother say "Yay, we can release some of these people we have been holding in foreign prisons now, and stop tapping your phones!" or will they say "Ooooh, we will have to be even MORE careful now..."

And how will we in the West react? The Arab Spring is demanding liberty and democracy. What is the West demanding?