Ding-Dong The Worst Terrorist Leader On Earth Is Dead.
Normally I don’t get involved in political stuff on my blog. I stick to my dogs, recipes, money saving solutions, our yard, and other items that don’t make people want to yell at me.
Normally.
But there are times when I wish I could have been around for a day in the past to experience the feelings of historic moments for our country. Like when we declared independence from Britain. Or when our country won that war and stood on its own two feet as a young country for the first time. When Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address. When World War II ended. Or any other number of moments that we look back at and think, “that was a big day for our country.”
I’m not sure I can compare Osama Bin Laden’s death to any of those HUGE moments I just mentioned. But I do think that when you realize that we have been at war for a decade trying to put an end to the terror that was brought to our doorstep on September 11, 2001, it is no small thing to realize the leader of the terrorists is removed from the equation. And I want my children to know exactly what the feelings were on the day it happened.
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I will never forget the horror I felt when the attacks of 9/11 took place. I was 16 years old, in high school, in my junior year. I was at school when the planes came crashing into the Twin Towers in New York. We stopped classes and just watched in mute disbelief as the buildings burned, people hurled themselves from windows, bodies were crushed in the rubble.
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One of my teachers said that Atlanta might be one of the next targeted cities after NYC and DC because of the CDC being located here or something like that. I was terrified. My brother was a freshman at Georgia Tech, and I wanted him to come home. No one would attack the little town we grew up in, and I thought that it would be safer.
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So many people died. So many families torn apart. So much hatred was brought against us by the Taliban, and civilians paid the price. It was truly heartwrenching.
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President George W. Bush was in office at the time. I remember him taking a stand. He went to Ground Zero. Spoke to the many people who were working for days to remove the rubble and find survivors.
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And I remember when he declared that this was war. We would not allow any more civilians to die and terrorists to force us to live in fear. We would fight back. And he was determined that we would win.
In the ten years since, it has become a political mess. People are for the war, people are against the war. People loved Bush and then they hated him with a hatred I had never seen towards a president, not even when Bill Clinton was almost kicked out of office.
President Obama was elected with his mantra of “Hope and Change” as he spoke against this war and many other things he didn’t like going on in our country. But the war continued. It was deemed necessary for the troops to stay put.
And, not long ago, he gave the orders to kill or capture Osama Bin Laden when there was enough evidence to support that they had found him hiding in a compound located “deep in Pakistan.”
So Osama Bin Laden was killed.
I don’t want to argue about whether Bush deserves the credit or Obama does. It doesn’t matter. Good leadership isn’t about taking credit. It’s about getting done what needs to be done.
And let’s be honest: neither of them were overseas when it happened. The military deserves the credit. Those men and women who have given so much up to protect us, who were sent on dangerous missions, they deserve the credit.
So, my future children, you might want to know how we all reacted to this news. I’ll tell you what I know so far.
Last night, there was a definite feeling of excitement coming from the news broadcasters as they spoke about the “breaking news” that was already all over the internet. They waited impatiently, as did we all, for the President to deliver his speech at the White House declaring officially that Bin Laden was dead.
Tom and I lay in bed waiting, and reading Twitter to see what everyone had to say. Then we were watching the President declare Bin Laden dead. After he delivered his speech, which was short and to the point, we turned off the tv. Then picked back up our phones and perused Twitter one more time to see what everyone was saying. Then we went to bed.
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I didn’t tweet anything last night. I knew 140 characters wouldn’t suffice, and this blog is proof of that. Mostly I felt frustration. A lot of the people, probably most of the people, that I follow on Twitter are Christians.
And there was an immediate outbreak of arguing among those Christians about whether we have the right to celebrate Bin Laden’s death. Is it okay to celebrate the death of someone who caused a war and the death of so many? Or is it wrong because we should have mercy and love and not be happy when our enemies fall?
Well. I can’t answer that. But I can tell you how I felt.
I’m not going to sugarcoat it. When I was brushing my teeth and Tom told me that Bin Laden was dead and turned on the news so we could wait to see Obama announce it, my first thought was, “Really?” Then my second thought was, “Good.”
Here’s the thing. I know that as Christians we are called to love others, including enemies, to give mercy and to allow God to be the judge. I’m not even for the death penalty in our country.
But let me remind you of something that people seem to have forgotten. WE ARE AT WAR. A war we didn’t start or ask for, but that Osama Bin Laden brought to our doorstep. And when you are fighting a war, it is not uncommon for the military to attack and even kill the enemy. In fact, that’s pretty much what war is.
Future kids, there are some people who are “big” in the Christian bubble. Specifically the Nashville, Tennessee, Chrisitan Bubble, but that’s as close to naming names as I will get. And when they speak online, I swear, sometimes other Christians act like it is the next chapter of the Bible being written via Twitter. And when they quote the Bible, it’s a double whammy, because it’s like a Nashville version of a prophet of God quoting God.
I’m pretty sure that not many people I follow on Twitter would ever entertain the idea that these people would or could quote a Bible verse out of context just because that out of context verse supports their opinion. But trust me, I have seen so much of it today, thanks to retweets. And I feel so frustrated.
It’s nothing new. People have been doing it for years. Pastors even do it in churches. But it’s more obvious now thanks to the internet.
And the worst ones are the tweets that talk about “how sad” or “how sorry” they feel for the Christians who are not sad when they hear Bin Laden has met his demise. It’s so condescending. So sure that they are more righteous in their attitude.
So sure of their more Godly ways, in fact, that they want the other Christians who are tweeting “Good job” to the troops to see how much they disapprove of that attitude. Modern day Pharisees use their twitter accounts to look down on others, it would seem.
Loving mercy doesn’t mean being weak. Turning the other cheek doesn’t mean “slap me again.” Jesus knew when to be merciful and when to drive out the wrong doers from the temples with whips. He taught love, and he taught mercy. But he also understood justice, and that is why he died for us. Someone had to pay the price.
And in this case, Bin Laden paid with his life. But not before he had thousands killed by his orders.
I’m not saying that he shouldn’t have been brought in and given a trial before execution. Not that anyone has any doubt that he was guilty, but that’s what Americans expect. I guess that a lot of Americans don’t realize that as soon as you get the label “terrorist” slapped on you, it doesn’t even matter if you are an American citizen, you lose all rights. That was made clear after 9/11.
Regardless of that, we know that he resisted (paragraph two). They had to shoot. And I’m grateful for the brave men who were sent to capture him and declare custody of him, one way or another.
I have no delusions of grandeur that killing Bin Laden means that terrorism is over. You cut off one head, and two more grow back in its place. But I think the message that it sends is what really counts for America.
We did not give up. We did not forget. And we will not stop until we are safe again.
That’s how I feel today.
~Meghan
nicely written and well put!
Thank you, Rebecca!
I totally agree. I think you hit the nail on the head. People are welcome to feel the way they do – and express it as such. If you are happy this man was brought to justice for the countless lives he is responsible for taking – then you can shout it from the rooftops!
And if you think that celebrating a military victory is morally wrong, then fine – shout that from the rooftops too. But also maybe realize how very very hypocritical it is to do so…
But when so many soldiers – American and foreign alike – have devoted and often sacrificed their lives to BRING this man to justice, I don’t understand how this can be viewed anything less than a victory. We don’t know how God will judge bin Laden, but that is out of our hands now.
Thanks for your thoughtful post Meghan – and God Bless America and the troops!
Thanks!
Well said. That’s all I’ve got to say.
Thank you.
I can’t say I’m not happy about an end to a man who exercised his capacity for evil to what seems to be the full extent. It’s very symbolic for the American people to see the face of this war actually get torn down. It’s also a psychological blow for those who worshiped him.
In the grand scale of things, though, I worry a little bit about our future relations with the middle east. The sudden uprising of people asking for democracy over the past months has been uplifting, in the sense that is seems two democratic nations tend to solve their problems with each other far less destructively than any other combination of government types. But as you mentioned, war with each other is like war with a hydra. For every person we as a nation kill, there is a family member or someone who loved them whose heart will turn black when regarding the United States and it’s people, much like our feelings turned towards anyone who was in the way of our mission to confront and possibly obliterate terrorism as a form of warfare. For them, a soldier was not just following orders. For them, the United States murdered their loved one. That’s a hard pill to swallow.
If India has learned anything from dealing with Pakistan and the terrorism stemming from their lands towards India, it is that there is no end, only victories along the way. Eventually your children are fighting their children only because their parents fought each other. We are not at war with Pakistan, but the war in the hearts of those that endured injustice at the hands of people wearing another nation’s garb. If we’re not careful, it is never ending. War has a way of scarring people for generations and breeds hate for others. We must seek to end war as much as we seek to end terrorism. For the unfair deaths of 3000 people with whom it started on 9.11, warring has caused tens of thousands more in civilian and military deaths for the US, their allies, and their enemies.
I dunno. I want to say WHOO THE EVIL GUY IS DEAD… but I know soon after another child will die, another mother will disappear, an american flag laden casket will find it’s way home, a us troop will lose his leg, and another 14 year old gunman will be blown away alongside everyone who falls for using terror tactics. It’s a melancholy victory. Not because of any Christian reason. Just because it’s a reminder of the reality of things. Of war in general.
In any case, I feel like destroying Osama was a step in the right direction. If it prevents even a modicum of terrorism, it was worth it. It’s a plain and high profile end to someone that was a psychological pillar of the terrorist movement. I hope it hurts that movement. I hope that in their hearts they have lost something. I hope they wake up with an extra doubt in their mind.
I’ll be 100% honest. I can’t say I’m sad at all about the incident. But I can say I hope this is maybe a turning point for America. A victory that means we can finally start healing. A closure that will help start the psychological repair. Maybe we can finally take toothpaste along with us on the plane. Or quit preparing to be singled out at the airport knowing that the way you look is all it takes to raise suspicion. Maybe we can bring our troops home soon, for the right reasons.
It’s a hopeful moment. May God have mercy on his soul. He’ll probably be better company for our creator than he was for us. : ]
TL:DR : I’m glad he’s gone. The war is still not over, especially in the hearts of people for generations on both sides. I’m still glad he’s gone.
Agreed. I’m glad he’s gone too, not because I want him to be dead and in Hell but because I want him removed as a face of a terrorist movement.
Though I don’t like war, I also don’t think we can sit there and take it when attacks like 9/11 occur. We have to stand up and fight when things like that happen. I hope that it won’t continue to breed anger and hatred between us and Middle Eastern countries. Honestly, I don’t think that “peace in the middle East” is something we can expect…ever.
But I also look at Japan and America…I don’t feel that our generation grew up with resentment towards the Japanese, and I’ve never met anyone who was Japanese that seemed to hate Americans. But the destruction caused to each country BY each other during WWII is pretty undeniable. I think it’s possible to have a war and then to overcome prejudices and resentments caused by that war. We were born only forty or so years after WWII ended. I would say that was a quick resolve of old feelings.
I did think about Japan and how their culture is different from Middle Eastern culture. I actually wrote a paragraph in the comment and then deleted it kind of because while yes, they were a nation we warred with, I didn’t see enough parallels between this war and that one to really consider them similar. The Japanese culture had ideologies that allowed them as a people to accept defeat. When they were defeated, they were defeated. They moved on and now they love our American culture, and I definitely think Americans love Japanese culture. I haven’t been able to walk into any bookstore without seeing a HUGE section devoted to Japanese manga or driven down state bridge without passing about 20 sushi places. I even got to make a Japanese windsock at the embassy booth at the Dogwood festival. Japan/USA is a good example of a good turnout after the end of a war.
If that is what a war could bring about between us and the middle east, that would be great but I also know that this isn’t a war against any single country or against a kind of people who view defeat as… well, defeat. Nor did we officially declare any war. I guess it’s kind of hard to when your target isn’t very clearly defined. So it’s all ambiguous with no real definition of victory. Al-Qaeda itself is very loosely organized, has ties in random countries, and has no definition of defeat. Even now, they’re regaining power in Afghanistan after we obliterated them in the military sense a few years ago.
If, eventually, this war means America can start going back to acting like it’s safe, then I’m game. If we can fire the entirety TSA I’d be even happier because those people SUCK. They’re some of the most poorly trained, disrepectful people I’ve ever met. I hate the first part of flying because of them.
Even then, I can’t say war is ever the “right” thing to do. Just like I can’t ever say dropping indiscriminate bombs on civilians and military alike in Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the “right” thing to do. But maybe, in the aftermath, we can still work towards peace, even if we don’t believe it’s ever truly possible, especially to us fallen humans. We can’t make things perfect, but we can at least try and make them better.
All I can hope, I guess, is that this war, and even Bin Laden’s death is a step towards that.
Thanks for sharing this, Meghan. As with several of the resposes, I am exceptionally conflicted over this. I think I need to sit and write to clear my head. I’ll start here, mostly because I think you are rational and well reasoned… something that is clear from your post.
As a Christian, I am indifferent. Not that this is something to be taken lightly, more that this is between Bin Laden and his Maker. The justice of the Lord is supreme and perfect, something that people cannot hope to replicate through juriducial processes.
As a former intenational security expert (I say former because I am about two years out of that literature at this point, though I suppose I could still teach an undergrad course on the subject), a surgical strike was the best option. Minimal peripheral damages mitigates public discontent.
Where I get lost is as a scholar of democratic theory. Democratic governance is predicated upon the moral equality of individuals (a concept that is familiar to us as Christians insofar as man is made is Gods image). As democratic societies, we have decided what institutions ensure the freedom that guarantees the respect of the moral equality of individuals. In this case, the most important of these seems to be due process. The perpetuation of democratic governance requires that these institutions be indifferent to unique circumstances – they were selected because we believe that they best ensure individual freedom and equality. Where these institutions are bypassed, this only serves to undermine democratic governance. All this reads like I think Bin Laden should have been brought to trial, but I’m not so sure. It is unclear to me that he would have received a “fair” trial is the West. We have seen how this has undermined the US’s credibility in terms of Guantanamo. Even if a “fair trial” had come to pass, I (like you, if I understood your related comment) believe that capital punishment undermines the freedom and equality that democratic governance is supposed to protect and would be surprised if the death penalty would not have been the outcome. It seems that either way, democratic governance is undercut. In fact, if the reports are accurate, it may be that this was the best outcome: shot after resisting. The frailty of “innocent until proven guilty in a court of law” was not demonstrated for the world to see, but this was no arbitrary shooting.
Again, not fully formed thoughts, but the (hopefully cogent) thoughts of a political scientist trying to grapple with the relief that a most horrific modern figure is gone in spite of my beliefs about individual worth and democratic justice.
Great insight and thoughts. Thanks for sharing!
Here’s my 5 minute take on the whole thing…
http://kpsagar.blogspot.com/2011/05/response-to-bin-ladens-death.html
I like.
Here’s John Piper’s take which I pretty much agree with:
Exactly. It’s not about rejoicing because someone is in Hell. That’s not what I think most people that are celebrating are doing. They’re celebrating justice and the removal of a figurehead for terrorists.