Thanks for a much more rational viewpoint than the typical demagoguery I see on the entertainment-masquerading-as-news....
One of my French colleagues asked why bin Laden was buried at sea. Someone else was quite articulate and well-reasoned as to why and I'm paraphrasing:
1) From a relgious and political standpoint, it was the right thing to do (in general terms) 2) What country would want the stigma of hosting the grave of the world's "Most Wanted Terrorist"? 3) The gravesite would be a rallying point for his followers 4) The gravesite would be a target for people wanting to desecrate it 5) What person or family would appreciate being buried next to him?
We agree on almost all points. This was handled terribly....god I hate saying this cos I know it makes me sound like a kook...if it actually happened like this and he was there at all. No trial, no body, now no pictures being released. Seal Six had to kill a 54 year old dialysis patient because he was a threat? In the dark?
This is either a giant cock up, or complete bullshit.
Either way I seem to have a hard time getting worked up over it.
The worst thing that could have happened would have been for bin Laden to die heroically, say blowing himself up and taking a couple of our guys with him, or even just blowing himself up. That would have been a disaster for us and a triumph for Al Qaeda. I imagine that had something to do with his killing, something along the lines of "If he doesn't blow himself up before you get there, DO NOT LET HIM."
There are certain tells though. The woman who rushed the first operator who came through the door was "shot in the leg but not killed." That speaks to the level of practiced control you would expect in our very best, but it makes killing bin Laden all the more questionable. I don't need to see the money shot, but I would like a plausible explanation of what happened in that room that necessitated the killing. If the answer is "I screwed up." I can deal with that.
I completely agree with the face that the scenes of celebration in the streets were distasteful. It seems that the initial thrill has worn off and there is a bit of a national hangover at the moment. It seems to me that this all comes down to the completely artificial distinction between violence on behalf of one's self, and violence on behalf of the state. The same act can either land you on jail or get you a medal. No matter how you dress it up killing is killing. The only real distinction that can be made is the one of self defence, which is the only rational for justified killing. That is why we would all feel better if Bin Ladin was armed and firing. In this case it would be a false assertion though since we initiated the encounter and made the decision to put our own people at risk. I realize this is probably not a popular point of view, but having taken a lot of time to study the theories of "Just War" I find it all unconvincing.
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One of my French colleagues asked why bin Laden was buried at sea. Someone else was quite articulate and well-reasoned as to why and I'm paraphrasing:
1) From a relgious and political standpoint, it was the right thing to do (in general terms)
2) What country would want the stigma of hosting the grave of the world's "Most Wanted Terrorist"?
3) The gravesite would be a rallying point for his followers
4) The gravesite would be a target for people wanting to desecrate it
5) What person or family would appreciate being buried next to him?
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This is either a giant cock up, or complete bullshit.
Either way I seem to have a hard time getting worked up over it.
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There are certain tells though. The woman who rushed the first operator who came through the door was "shot in the leg but not killed." That speaks to the level of practiced control you would expect in our very best, but it makes killing bin Laden all the more questionable. I don't need to see the money shot, but I would like a plausible explanation of what happened in that room that necessitated the killing. If the answer is "I screwed up." I can deal with that.
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Don't lump me in with Alex Jones just yet though. Occam Razor and all. I just think this whole thing was pretty messed up functionally.
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