Monday, May 02, 2011

OBAMA GOT OSAMA "but where is the Justice?"

This title is attributed to my boss. This morning, he came in the office chanting that, and it stuck with me.
Obama got Osama and then fed him to the fish-unlike Jonah and the whale, he won't be spit out alive.
So we have heard the news...Osama Bin Laden was killed in the compound that he was "hiding" in. Now let us use the word "hiding" lightly, for the man was surely not hiding in such open air. Ask the Pakistanis, they would tell you all about it.

Now, back to the real issue. Bin Laden is dead. So where is the victory? And what Justice?
Let me preface this by saying that in the Nairobi Bombing, I lost friends and my father nearly died. So why don't I feel justified, or rather victorious? Oh wait, I know why- this is not justice. and sadly no victory either. You see justice includes having a man face his crimes, and the decision is made not by a gun, but by word of mouth. Justice has to be considered by three components: Punishment, reparations, and the right to truth.- none of which is what happened to Osama. What justice have the victims received? and what about the war that is still going on in Afghanistan? Where is their justice?

A flashmob at Ground Zero is -well- touching. I used to work there, so I can imagine how great it would have felt to see the jubilation. Lets be clear- Obama has just won his second term. Polically, this is a huge victory. But what are we celebrating? The lives of Americans lost in what was essentially a war against a man who lived in a cave? the Lives of Afghanis lost in this warped sense of retribution? The now bleak future of the people of Afghanistan who live in a shadow government? Or are we celebrating the victory of Halliburton in protecting its assets? Please tell me, for that American whose dollars have been misused-what exactly are you celebrating? Feel free to correct me if I am wrong here.

Whose death are you celebrating? The real problem is still out there. Osama Bin Laden was a general- but of the worst kind. He was a monster. Much like we can attribute lunacy to Qaddafi.
Osama bin Laden was much human, and very much led by his ego—he was a leader after all. He was really if you think about it, like those of us who have never thought of going to war- or confronted others from the opposite fence. Osama bin Laden was an aristocrat warrior- think of the princes of Persia. Or you just study the aristocrats of old. He loved to be photographed alongside his rifles- but did he really use them? But like a highly decorated general, he spent his life sending others to battle without discrimination- men, women, even children to die. He killed Muslims as easily as the rest of the others(infidels). A very sad comparison-but he learned how to use religion to his defense, and the West kept giving him all the ammunition he needed. he killed Muslims as freely as he killed the rest of us—infidels.

So what victory? Please remember, Osama Bin Laden was no martyr. Those who are fighting are still alive. For all his madness- he was smart. Never forget that. Unfortunately, you can't say the same about those around him.- He might be dead, but the terrors he surfaced are still alive.

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