Death of Osama Bin Laden

by Dillion Freed
May 4, 2011

http://www.weeklyblitz.net/1411/death-of-osama-bin-laden

For many people in the Muslim world, the killing of Osama bin Laden, is at once the loss of a hero and a major inspiration to continue their deceased hero's cause.

And as we celebrate their hero's death, the radical Muslim world look upon the thousands of Americans who took the streets in Washington, D.C. and Manhattan at midnight as "dogs cheering the death of a lion," to quote an Imam in the Middle East speaking on the kill.

The actual operation, the radicals believe, shines poorly on the American killers, and very brightly upon the killed. Bin Laden true to his words, was an embodiment of Jihad, for he resisted and refused surrender in the face of a dozen heavily armed American Navy Seals. That's their pitch to potential recruits.

The nation of Pakistan will have many pledge their allegiance to it. After all, they tricked the "wickedest" nation on earth for at least the last six years. More yet, the idea that bin Laden's death could bring an end to Al Qaeda, they feel, is mistaken; instead, bin Laden's murder, they believe, will be the impetus for a "surge" of their own.

They also do not see the United States as more robust because of the kill. In their eyes, it took ten years to off one man and several billion dollars to execute one man; thus, the United States is not as puissant as it thinks.

To such souls, the odds are now more than ever in the favor of Al Qaeda and similar groups. They know the U.S. economy is weak, and an American bankruptcy can be caused by a thousand tiny, forced withdrawals. Indeed, a mere feint of an attack and the entire United States flinches – each flinch is a multi-million dollar hit to their economy because it activates of a Brobdingnagian security apparatus each time a threat occurs.

But that's there spin, and their spin does not look certain facts in the eye: President Obama, who they thought may be their ally or their friend or soft – has turned out not to be much of any of that. Obama does not mind assassinations, Guantanamo Bay being open, drone strikes, the killing of Somalia pirates, renditions, airstrikes in Libya, ignoring Pakistan sovereignty, and even harsh interrogation techniques, as much as he did as a candidate and Senator. That's bad news for the bad guys.

Further, our military is the undisputed, Ivy League educated, heavy weight champion of the world – having River-dance agility and one-punch, knock-out power commingled. For a moment consider the feats of the armed forces of the "Great Satan" in just the last ten years: it conquered Baghdad in three weeks, the Surge reversed what nearly everyone thought was a lost war in Iraq, and now you have the assassination of bin Laden in an operation that took only 38 minutes. You are witnessing the most powerful and skilled fighting force ever to lace them up.

And finally, while the claims that Islamic terrorists will amp up their attacks after bin Laden's death may be true, it is also true the United States, for the first time since mid-2003, looks surprisingly (and suddenly) fresh and invigorated.

It was quite agreeable to be living in New York City at the time, and less than a mile away from Ground Zero when it was announced that the once towering figure of Al Qaeda, bin Laden, had been collapsed by several small metal planes crashing into his body. The killing rate of terrorists by the United States military has depleted the ranks of most of the capable radical Islamic leaders, much like Europe was suffering a want of leaders in the 1920s because of the mass slaughters of capable men in World War I. And yet, our joy and relief must be brief. After a quick, deserved celebration, it must be back to work and back to war. The death of bin Laden, and all the unity and vitality that comes with it, does not entail the end of the global War on Terror. It cannot, for there are still far too many men who think a hero died on May 1^st.

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