The Death of Osama Bin Laden

When I first heard of the death of Osama Bin Laden I was shocked, but as I continued to watch the news coverage an uneasy feeling crept through me. I was relieved that the person who perpetuated one of the most horrific acts in contemporary history was no longer with us, however I was saddened to see people so elated by the death of this man. He caused a lot of harm, to a lot of people, yet many of the people singing and dancing in the streets were never actually directly affected by this man. Many of them did not know anyone who died on 9/11, nor served in the military and was sent to war because of him, nor had they lost someone in war because of him. One person interviewed was happy because he thought he would no longer have to remove his shoes at airport security. Many of the people on the streets looked young, which led me to conclude that many of them barely remember life without Osama. The fact is, this should not be a joyous occasion; it should be a time of remembrance for those who were lost on that sad day and in the wars that followed.

Upon further reflection, I had to wonder, what role does race play in this celebration. A vast majority of the people seen on the streets chanting “U.S.A. U.S.A.” was white. Why is this? After many discussions and much thought, I feel it comes down to the fact that it has been a long time since white America has gotten its ass kicked by a person of color, and on 9/11, that happened. This is very similar to the backlash we have seen by the white supremacy movement since the election of Barack Obama, but on a lot larger scale. If you do not think this is true, then why was there no dancing and singing when Timothy McVeigh was captured and/or executed. He was a terrorist, who did an almost identical act. Why was there no jubilation when Ted Kaczynski, who was elusive for nearly 20 years, he too was a terrorist… The fact is they were both white domestic terrorists, but when someone says the word terrorist, the first image that pops into someone’s head is that of an Arab person.

Another sad part is the way in which the media has framed the story. It is incomplete, and has many holes. First, the fact that it has been framed as a Republican and/or Democratic victory makes me sick. Pundits on the left declaring this as a big win for Obama, or from the right saying this is due to Bush, is absolutely moronic, and I think they should all just shut the hell up cause they just sound like a bunch of dumb assholes… Secondly, usually when someone dies, their whole life is chronicled, however with Bin Laden, it seems to begin with 9/11 and end with his recent death. The media rarely brings up the fact that he was trained and armed by the United States when he was a part of the Mujahideen fighting the Russians occupation of Afghanistan. Furthermore, no one mentions his strategy, which was meant to draw the United States into a war of attrition in order to sink the US economically; with that in mind, he is still winning. We still have many troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and may soon have troops in Libya. Which makes one wonder, was Cheney a greedy shortsighted oil monger or an Al-Qaeda operative (Sorry, bad joke).

Seriously though, many of my brothers and sisters in arms have now died and are still in harms way because of the events on 9/11. We perpetuated an unjust war in Iraq, which had nothing to do with this man, however because the white house at the time already had its sights set on Iraq, 9/11 gave them a justification to invade because they knew they would have public support. This support was founded on a fear of Arabs and Muslims. 9/11 created a boogey man that looked like anyone in a turban or anybody who prays to Mecca. This never happened after the Oklahoma City Bombing, a war was not declared on crazy rednecks that are in the KKK or some back woods militia. This again makes me question the racial element of it all.

Another important point is this idea of justice. Many are claiming, “Justice was served.” But was it? I have no qualms about the Seals shooting Bin Laden if they were returning fire. However, unless the video of what happened is released we will never know. I only say this because there have been many conflicting reports as to what actually happened within that compound. Some say he had a gun, some say he didn’t, some say they had already captured him, etc. If they did have him, and executed him, where is the justice? We didn’t hunt down and execute the Nazi’s who committed mass genocide, we captured them and put them on trial. That is what a democratic society is supposed to be founded upon. Not assassinations, not execution without trial… That is not justice.

Lastly, the cheering of violence leads me to believe that there is something wrong with our culture. It can be seen in almost every aspect of our lives now and days, from sports like “Ultimate Fighting,” to movies, and video games. We have become a war culture, which is desensitized to death and destruction, and furthermore, we glamorize and celebrate it. If you are not disturbed by this fact, there may be something wrong with you. Think about this, what if I walked up to your grandmother, and kicked the living shit out of her, all the while people are behind me cheering and rooting me on. Seems extreme, but think about the game “Grand Theft Auto,” oh yeah, forgot about that… What I’m getting at, is that by cheering for Osama’s death we all lose; first, we lose because we have lost a bit of our humanity, and have inched closer to his level; second, we lose because we have lost sight of what is good, important, and what should be celebrated: life, love, peace, happiness, etc. Until we start shifting away from this culture of violence there will be no peace; life will continue to become less valued, and; love and happiness will become harder to find.