My opinion has been held back until now, given the whipsnaps at anyone not in open agreement, but...
Even in a time of war, even knowing exactly what kind of a terribad guy Bin Laden was, I will
never be comfortable with revelling in the death of another. You cannot say in one hand "We're better than that" when hearing of tortured people and folks dancing in the streets at the destruction caused here, and then in the other, waterboard random suspects and have it be socially acceptable to hold parties at the death of an enemy, y'know?
In the anger from the 9/11 attack, the actions that have taken place are understandable, but striking out so hard may have been incredibly clumsy, like trying to hack off one of the heads of a hydra, only to see two returning in its place. Much of what has been done would have only fortified the hate and propaganda thrown against America, and spurred people to their cause, and yet total inaction would have left the situation seeming as if without repercussion. A very careful response was needed, but instead, the powers that were, seemed to just struggle against their leashes trying to effect the quickest retaliation, eventually going as far to fabricate what they needed to move, and without support from their allies. All that is clear, and will become increasingly clear as the dust settles after all of this :
Is that you cannot kill an idea by killing a man.
I also don't feel that saying "the terrorists didn't win" is accurate. Call it anecdotal if you must, but people are so paranoid that they call bombsquads when they see litebrites or camcorders laying around, and are still on guard around anything with a turban or a funny accent. Terrorism... terror. They did exactly what they came for. Not just America, but this has reached out to here in the UK too, and other places to lesser extents. They did exactly what they came for. No matter how harsh the repercussions for the crime should or should not be, in allowing any of our rights to be subdued, in allowing your culture to be shaken so deeply, in allowing the war to begin without fully thinking it through, didn't they in a sense, actually win? I know that is a bitter pill to swallow, and if I had any better way to say it, I would, but I have a hard time calling the word "Justice" into any part of this mess. Only "revenge".
I cannot say right from wrong in the big picture, that much, only time can tell, as retrospect seems to be the only clear revealer in matters of political intensity... but I feel a subtle irony in the premise of the "civilised west". Remember that patriotism isn't to agree with everything said, done and accepted as norm. Patriotism is to love your country, even if that means expecting better of it, and not being afraid to be critical even in the hardest (or most victorious) of times. People disagreeing with how things have turned out aren't necessarily pointing a finger at you and yelling that you're all stereotypical fat americans, just as your counterpoints don't mean you are in full agreement with everything that has happened around this subject. Though showing barbs to one another is a surefire way of helping them to misinterpret you.
Now, hopefully I won't get demolished by waves of embittered thinly-veiled "you disagree so you're an idiot" from both sides...
Come at me, bro.
