I've read a number of oped pieces now on the death of OBL and none that I have seen really reflects my thinking on the matter. Some commentators might make a few points that resonate but inevitably they make others that do not. First, I'm relieved that Bin Laden is gone and thank the men and women who worked hard and put their lives at risk to bring him to justice. However, I don't get the frat party atmosphere that broke out after the announcement was made - there were cheerleaders making pyramids in the crowd outside the Whitehouse. What the hell is wrong with these kids? What I felt when I heard the news was a sense of relief, but its not as if terrorism is no longer a threat because he is gone. I mourn all the death and destruction that he wrought and the high cost of combating the movement he created. I'm glad that he can no longer perpetuate that destruction. But, we shouldn't have to be in a position where we have to hunt people down and kill them and the business is a grim one. Why would you celebrate that? You shouldn't feel that way. These kids must have been in elementary school when this happened. Perhaps they don't grasp the reality of it - perhaps it's too abstract for them. Perhaps I just know too much. What bothers me is what this all means for our justice system. Its not clear that they intended to capture Bin Laden. Killing him outright sends the wrong message. This is how western movies end, not how mature civilizations create justice. We tried Nazis, but we can't try terrorists. Maybe its not Obama's fault - maybe a trial would have been an absolute circus - but that doesn't make it OK. The question of the vitality of the principals of our system in the face of terrorism is now closed. I'm tired of conservatives whining about reading Bin Laden the miranda warning. Its not about miranda rights. Its about hauling these fuckers before the world and forcing them to take responsibility for their actions, and making it clear that all of the good people of the world, regardless of race, religion, or country, absolutely condemn the things that they have done, and there is no room for questions about whether or not that is really true. Its about discrediting them. That would have been justice. Instead, we've sent a message about power and revenge that does little to undermine those who advocate that this act should be answered in kind. We've perpetuated the cycle of violence here. There is a kid in the middle east who saw those cheerleaders on TV and is very angry about it. Some day that kid is going to kill a lot of people. If he'd seen jurists rather than cheerleaders things might have been different. | 
