Always the Twain Shall Meet

In a previous posting, I opined what Mark Twain might have said about the current media environment. Not surprisingly, Twain had a thoroughly fitting quote for the news about Osama Bin Laden.

"I've never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure."

If This Is Winning, I'd Hate to Learn What Losing Feels Like

Like a lot of my friends, I'm a little uncomfortable hearing about people celebrating the death of Osama Bin Laden by singing Queen's We Are the Champions. Nothing against Queen, it just feels like the wrong time to boast. At the same time, I think (or at least hope) that this is generally speaking an example of benign mob mentality, especially where New York City is concerned.  That is to say, I believe most people intellectually understand that Bin Laden's death isn't really the end of terrorist threats, they're just reacting to him as a symbol. Over the past decade, and a sequence of events that ultimately straddled three American presidencies, he became a symbol not only of the threat of terrorism but also the way in which we as a country allowed ourselves to be distracted from the actual fight against it. In that light, Bin Laden's death has a cathartic aspect that, while it may be overblown, should not be casually dismissed.

Obama vs. Osama

It's sad to think that the news that US forces have succeeded in killing Osama Bin Laden probably won't make a bit of difference to the people who dismiss President Obama as an un-American foreign-born usurper. I won't be surprised to see an onslaught of conspiracy theories relating to whether the body us real that will put the so-called "9/11 truthers" (let alone "Obama birthers") to shame. For sensible people, though, this development is a highly tangible sign that the Obama administration continues to pursue the best interests of the American people. Clinton and Bush tried and failed to get Bin Laden. Obama did it. The GOP underestimates our current President at their own risk.