Osama Bin Laden: dead

[lph]

I can't bring myself to cheer because a man is dead, but I am happy that he no longer will able to plan or execute terrible actions towards other people. He may well become a martyr and inspire revenge under a new leader, but still, there have been so many martyrs before him, and not many leaders actually to manage to gain as much power and sway over people as he did.

[Owlie]

I can't bring myself to cheer because a man is dead, but I am happy that he no longer will able to plan or execute terrible actions towards other people. He may well become a martyr and inspire revenge under a new leader, but still, there have been so many martyrs before him, and not many leaders actually to manage to gain as much power and sway over people as he did.

^ This.

[crazycanuck]

If you think this will stop 12yr olds wanting to martyr themselves..think again.

I don't buy it..i want to see a body.

[Kitsune06]

I'm glad I'm not the only one surprised he wasn't captured for interrogation, trial, and moreover so the world could get a look at the man in custody and see him charged with his crimes against humanity as Saddam was and then shot, boiled alive, hung by his toenails or fed to rabid hamsters.

Saddam was found in a spider hole, haggard and used-up. Bin Laden? The report given says that he appeared well fed in a $1mil villa rather close to Pakistan's version of West Point. The guy was supposedly having weekly dialysis for renal failure But I guess if no autopsy was done we'll never know if that was true. He wasn't exceedingly mobile, and this after rumors went around that as of 2009 he was likely dead for 7 years post renal collapse. See here

The attack- Navy SEALs bust into the compound the US knew about since last August and not only head shoot him, but also kill everyone else in the room, though there are no US casualties, and then the body is rapidly disposed of at sea before the American public even knows the guy is dead. I would have thought they'd keep his body for autopsy or maybe to tick his head on a pike?

So really when it comes down to it is "He's gone, halleleuja, we did it, no you can't see the body, and there are no surviving witnesses but our men, but we're telling you it's true."

Maybe I'm still shell shocked after the Bush presidency, but doesn't any of that seem just a little fishy to anyone?

Just posting as an alternative way to think on this. I don't know that this will change anything because the man has gotten exactly what would be the best-case senario for his death- a violent slaying at the hands of the devil Americans. What better cause for his people to rally around?

I know revenge is a dish best served cold, and the people most affected by 9/11 may feel some peace, but this is not over. Our family members, husbands, brothers, and friends will still be deployed to the middle east to 'keep the peace'... whatever that means these days.

[ny biker]

This is a good blog post from a man who until recently was a personal tech columnist for the Washinton Post.

http://robpegoraro.com/2011/05/03/911-to-51/

[Mr. Bloom]

So really when it comes down to it is "He's gone, halleleuja, we did it, no you can't see the body, and there are no surviving witnesses but our men, but we're telling you it's true."

Maybe I'm still shell shocked after the Bush presidency, but doesn't any of that seem just a little fishy to anyone?

I hear ya', but if he were captured alive, I could see mass reprisals geared to gain his release... Or kidnappings for which OBL would be the ransom. Not a good outcome.

If he were alive, don't you think that there would be some benefit from al-Q saying "nah, nah...you got the wrong guy". Instead, they referred to him as a "martyr". Why would they want to allow him to suffer a "false death" since it would neutralize him for the cause...plus, if we didn't find him, that would mean that he was still successfully hidden somewhere else making us look that much more foolish. Pakistan also would have a vested interest in highlighting our error since we violated their sovereignty in the attack and making them look very two faced and foolish.

We've gone from "birthers" last week, to "deathers" this week. I, for one, have no reason to believe he wasn't killed, even if I don't see any pictures, videos, etc.

AND, if he in fact used his wife as a "human shield" during the action, I think it proves that he is just like the guy we found in a hole...

[NbyNW]

Oh, and even if the government were to release photos, copies of DNA tests, there would probably still be people who would claim it was fake. You just can't win sometimes.

[Irulan]

Oh, and even if the government were to release photos, copies of DNA tests, there would probably still be people who would claim it was fake. You just can't win sometimes.

...and creating new conspiracy theories about all of it. I think I'll go get my tin foil hat now.

[Xrayted]

Just so you don't keep picking at this one for the rest of the thread... Kit never said she didn't believe he was dead or the account of it. She just poked you to question it a bit for yourself. It is fishy. When you first heard how it all went down, didn't you just sit there for a moment and say to yourself... "What?" Never stop doing that on issues as important as this. We tend to wander off to the next story or angle too quickly...

[ny biker]

When you first heard how it all went down, didn't you just sit there for a moment and say to yourself... "What?"

Nope. I thought: "Shot in the head? Good." And "Buried at sea? Good, no grave to turn into a shrine."

[NbyNW]

When you first heard how it all went down, didn't you just sit there for a moment and say to yourself... "What?" Never stop doing that on issues as important as this. We tend to wander off to the next story or angle too quickly...

Of course. I totally agree with you that a healthy dose of skepticism is always important. But there's a healthy dose vs. an over-dose, and I don't mean you or Kitsune because I think you've both done a great job of putting your comments in context.

There are people who will doubt no matter what evidence you put in front of them, and there will always be conspiracy theories.

I'm just of the opinion that terrorists really don't care to give us the time or space to verify for ourselves something that they probably already know. We're all free to believe what we want and trust who we will. OBL's followers are already moving on to figure out the next way that they can hurt us.

[Catrin]

I can't bring myself to cheer because a man is dead, but I am happy that he no longer will able to plan or execute terrible actions towards other people. He may well become a martyr and inspire revenge under a new leader, but still, there have been so many martyrs before him, and not many leaders actually to manage to gain as much power and sway over people as he did.

^ agree. The fight against terrorism isn't over, but thankfully there are few leaders as charismatic as he apparently was. It is good that justice has been done.

[ridebikeme]

Like all of you, I am glad that Bin Laden can no longer do some of the horrible things he has done in the past... but reality is that it doesn't end simply because he is gone.

I also would like to think that there might be a tiny sliver of closure for many people in our country, but somehow partying and celebrating seems as though we are exhibiting the same types of behavior. I am glad that he is gone, but somehow my heart tells me that it's simply wrong to celebrate. Our countrys face in the world is changing, and it's sad that we are now looking like such a revengeful country! Are our actions being looked upon as being any different than some of the more violent countries?

I agree with Crazy Canuck, if this is such a wonderful thing for people to celebrate... where is the body?

It's time that we acted with class...

[Biciclista]

ridebikeme, well said.
On the other hand, do you all really believe that Bin Ladin was the only person complicit in the 9-11 tragedy? We will never know the rest of the story. Remember who he was buddies with? I'm glad this assassination happened on Obama's watch, and I do hope this means we can bring some of our guys home as fast as we can.

[roadie gal]

I have such mixed feelings.

I'm glad he's gone. But it shouldn't have taken this long.

On one level I want to celebrate but on another level I find it appalling to be celebrating a death this way. Don't get me wrong, most of my family is in the New York City area. I was so pissed off at 9/11 that I joined the army in hopes that I'd get sent to Afganistan (I wasn't). I wanted him dead. But I just don't know about the celebrations. To me it's a sober moment.