Maybe I'm a little naive, maybe I'm a little crazy...but this nonsense about cheering for the death of Osama Bin Laden has got to be one of the most pathetic behaviors the United States has ever partaken in. I understand the atrocious acts this man had committed over the past twenty years and the countless lives he ended. I also understand that in his death many more lives have potentially been saved...but I can't help but wonder where the American public's justification of killing a man results in "justice".Osama Bin Laden was by all accounts a martyr for his cause. Does anyone really think he would've gone out any other way? He proved the point he made so many years ago, "Americans love to live, and we love to die".
This is not to take away any of the grief or relief felt by those who lost family members, friends, and loved ones on September 11, 2001 or during the ongoing ten year campaign in the middle east but the fact that crowds of people around the world are excited that he's dead, that people feel America and her allies have made progress in the never ending war on terror...it's sickening. What happened to we hold these truths to be self evident; that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? Are we so far gone in our attempts to be on top that we've forgotten about what made America in the first place? We're supposed to be a melting pot for all races, all ideas, all religions...but we've turned away from the most basic important principles. LIFE. LOVE.
We've all been bestowed with the gift of life, a beautifully complex miracle...and yet we seem to forget how amazing that miracle is and cast it out like a penny in the rain. Too many times to people selfishly think of themselves, think of their own priorities, think of their own needs, looking for any and all ways to assert themselves and be on top. Striving for excellence is not a bad thing, don't get me wrong, but when are willing to step on those we see as inferior to us...we begin to weave a very tangled web. When did one life become more important than another? Yes Osama is responsible for orchestrating the deaths of thousands of people but in the end he was a man just like the rest of us, with the same divine human dignity we all posses. Did he choose to use his gift of free will by disrespecting the dignity of others, yes. Did he deserve what was coming to him, no. No one deserves to die, for ultimately the judgment of humanity rests in the hands of God. I for one can not bring myself to damn the man to hell, after all I have made mistakes as well in my life and cannot claim that I have used my free will to benefit more than just myself.
So where does this leave us? Maybe the United States will make progress and bring the troops home sooner rather than later now. Or maybe Bin Laden's organization will seek revenge and everything will get worse. I stand by my position that cheering for the death of any human being is wrong, no matter what their crime and I find it sad that America has become so consumed by the past and hatred that she has forgotten to rejoice in new life, to realize that death is a part of living, that life goes on, and that ultimately we have forgotten what it means to forgive. We have forgotten that the only reason we are here is by God's mercy. We have forgotten that LIFE and LOVE are the most important characteristics humanity can have and should uphold.
My roommate, Alisa and I were discussing this today. Totally with you.
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