…but you will only die tired.
Wow. With the demise of Usama Bin Laden (UBL), there is so much out there to point out. I think I will start with these tidbits, and then refer you on to some others:
- Details are emerging (more to follow) on the event and as usual the folks responsible for localizing, and eliminating the target are part of JSOC. Gents, you do your job very well, and we are grateful.
- POTUS: He waits multiple days to make a speech about the event. Then he delays that speech by about an hour vs. his announced timing. He makes the speech in a “dramatic” fashion with him walking down a hallway to a podium instead of from the Oval Office. Finally, he prattles on about how this event should be a call to unite the nation blah blah blah. Words of advice: You are POTUS, use the Oval Office to make your speech. Although, that long walk down the red carpet by yourself with your back to the camera may be your “defining moment”. When you are announcing the death of one very evil Saudi born, multi-billionaire perhaps calling for a unifying moment is perhaps a bit celebratory. Celebrating the death of a human, no matter how evil, is just wrong. Especially for POTUS.
- To the celebratory crowds outside the White House, and hanging around behind the network feed in NYC this morning. “Bad form”. All that has happened is that a cockroach has been eliminated. There are still threats to this nation out there.
Major Pain, has a very interesting post up on how this unfolded for him over here. His BLUF sums it up nicely, “…some “unmentionable” joint steely eyed warriors swiftly acted on some solid intel and went in with a lot of hate and discontent. After about a million dry missions missing Bin Laden, when you get positive ID, you don’t let him off the hook and you bring the American military power down onto him full throttle.You can run but you will only die tired.”
Chuck Z, has his posted his reaction to the events. It is pretty lengthy but here are five paragraphs that parallel my reaction:
There is one less Saudi-born terrorist multibillionaire in the world today. I met the news of the death of Osama bin Laden (hereafter referred to as UBF, for UglyBeardedFuckstick™) believe it or not, with mixed emotions.Relief, because I knew that there was one less truly evil sonofabitch roaming the planet, making plans to kill my family. Granted, he wasn’t very likely to specifically target my family, but then again, I am the #1 google result for “new funny pictures” so there is always the possibility.Gratitude, for the hundreds of thousands of military personnel, and the millions of their family members who have sacrificed so much through all of this, and will continue to sacrifice, as this is not the end, any more than killing Hitler in 1942 would’ve brought an end to WWII. Sure, we stand outside the Whitehouse and in Times square and celebrate and clap and sing and whatever else goes on at these rallies, but it is the families and friends of our fighting men and women who are truly the ones who show support for the troops, far more than a one-off rally or a car magnet. It is to these silent heroes that we, the military, owe our undying love and gratitude.Apprehension, because our enemy may very well be emboldened to double down, now that UBF has been brought to room temperature. Ask yourself, if AQ were to attack and kill the US President, despite what you may think of his administration, would you want, even more, to hunt down and kill everyone even remotely responsible? What about when you saw pictures of the jubilant celebrations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, etc. on 9/12/01? Do you remember how you felt when you saw that? Do you think our enemy will feel differently? The DoD has raised the force protection level across the board–but a smart enemy (and only fools believe their enemy to be anything else) will bide his time, and wait for us to become complacent.Some things I don’t feel, necessarily, are pride, or joy, or happiness. I don’t really think it goes well with taking a human life. Granted, I do believe that UBF was sub-human (see untermensch) but I also believe that we should not let our emotions into the business of killing. We took UBF to the mattresses, nothing more. We killed him, with no more regard for him than a cockroach, and we should celebrate his death with the same fanfare. To do any more only deifies him, and will fuel his martyrdom.
The National Journal has a good post up on what was behind the execution of this raid. It appears that we have had UBL localized for a couple of months now, and it was a large raid force.
What are the thoughts from the Marines on the ground in Helmand? JD Johannes is with them and brings you their reaction here.
There will be a lot of talk about this for a long time to come. Probably a movie or two. But, GWOT is not over. The war between select Islamic organizations and the rest of the world has been on for thousands of years I am sure that it will not end any time soon.