Tuesday, May 3, 2011

No Champagne for Me, Thanks.



Photo courtesy of White House photographer Pete Souza

Yes, Osama Bin Laden is dead.
Yes, this is a victory our country has long sought, and I, like most Americans, am relieved. 
And yet…

I understand people celebrating the fact that the man behind the heinous attacks of 9/11 is now gone from this Earth. I pray the families of the 9/11 victims feel some sense of closure. I am incredibly proud of our President, the decisions he made, and above all, proud of the heroic Navy Seals who took on that mission.
But…

I have to say, all that cheering in the streets felt a bit off to me. I remember the horrid dread I felt on  9/11, when people in the Middle East were cheering in the streets over American deaths. Although our victims were innocent, I still believe we as Americans have to set the bar higher. This “Us Against Them” mentality never gets us anywhere but right back into the middle of the conflict. It's like kicking a hornet's nest. No one wins.

Don't get me wrong. Bin Laden was evil and this needed to be done.
But look at the faces of President Obama and Hillary Clinton in the above photo. This was no celebration.

My husband’s friend Steve Kettman wrote a great piece on this in the Huffington Post today. I can’t say it any better so I quote him here:

I heave a sigh of relief, glad that bin Laden is out of the way, but forgive me if I pop no Champagne corks. This was a grim necessity, not a touchdown.”

My sentiments exactly, Steve. 

To read Steve Kettman’s piece, click here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-kettmann/taking-out-osama-was-grim_b_856178.html

3 comments:

  1. Interesting post. I was happy to see people celebrating. I think they were acknowledging that some evil was taken off the earth. Any reason for a celebration-sometimes not always appropriate but I thought it showed some American Spirit.

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  2. I hear you Madge, and have complete respect for anyone who feels differently. I just think this business of killing human beings is serious stuff, not a world series win.
    But...I didn't live through it in NY, I didn't lose anyone in the twin towers, and so I respect other's rights to their own unique feelings.
    Peace y'all.

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  3. I'll add these quotes, courtesy of Good.com:

    1. "Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. ... The chain reaction of evil—hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars—must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation." -Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love

    2. "Do not rejoice when your enemies fall, and do not let your heart be glad when they stumble." -Proverbs 24:17

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