Today is such an important day in our nation's history, and I was surprised that more bloggers aren't talking about it. Sooooo.... I'm going to!
May 1, 2011 is a date that will for sure be marked in our history books from this day forward. Just like most of us remember where we where/what we were doing/how we were feeling on September 11th, I'm positive we will also remember every detail of those emotions and feelings that we felt today as we found out that Osama Bin Laden has finally been found and put to death.
As morbid as America's celebrations may seem on the surface, all of the happy faces and excited emotions are due largely in part to our nation finally getting some closure on one of the worst days that many of us have ever been apart of. A day when our personal sense of security was shaken, and where (for me anyway) our biggest nightmare became a reality. Sure, terrorism is still a very real concept and there are and still will be wars and devastation and suicide missions... but we have finally gotten a little assurance that one of the monsters in our universe has been quieted and paid the ultimate price for so many lives that have been lost as a result of that day. It's similar to the partying and laughter and over-all universal sigh of relief that I'm sure many felt when Hitler died.
I was surprised, as an individual who is 110% against the death penalty, that I felt so much emotion today. My husband woke me up last night to announce the news, and I instantly felt relieved - like I could sleep a little easier and that the Universe was a little more balanced than the day before. This morning on my way to work, I felt so connected to my country and our troops and President that I literally wept. This gave me a glimpse into my own belief system and reminded me that black and white thinking does not exist, situations are complicated, and that my views are more complex than even I realized.
I was sad that across facebook, some of my friends were unable to be happy and took it as an opportunity to create friction and bash President Obama. I would encourage liberals and conservatives to drop their titles, at least for today, so that we can all simply be 'American'.
At the very least, I hope you can find humor in the parallel that I've drawn in my imagination between Osama Bin Laden and the Wicked Witch of the West (it's been stuck in my head all day!). It helps me feel better about my support for this terrorists execution... good riddance!
“I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. 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.”
ReplyDelete— Martin Luther King Jr. & Kaz
Thanks for the input "anonymous", but this is my blog and these are my very real and very human thoughts about a very complex situation, where thousands have lost their lives. I do not condone violence, but in my gut I feel as if this was the right thing to do. I appreciate your perspective, but would probably respect it more if you weren't hiding behind your computer screen.
ReplyDeleteHi Kara, your right it is your blog, you are entitled to your opinion. I dont have a blogger account or google account so that is why it is posted as anonymous, which is also why I signed it Kaz. I just know that if George Bush was killed and muslims were dancing in the street and rejoicing, as he is also seen as a monster to a lot of people, that the reactions would be different. I dont condone what either side has done, and my personal believe is that George Bush is a terrorist, but this quote by MLK challenged my beliefs, that if I was to celebrate his death (George's) I would be no better, and I want to be a better person. thanks Kaz
ReplyDeleteAlso wanted to share that you might want to read the blog Starving Artist and her views on this topic and her readers views, very enlightend comments -http://starvingartistink.com/ I was going to post the MLK quote on this blog exactly the same as I did on your blog, but someone else had already done so, and after reading all the comments I didn't think I there was anything else I could add that had not already been said. If you read the post and the subsequent comments, you will notice how many people responded to Erin's post on this very same topic. I am happy to give you my email address if this would make you feel better, Blessing Kaz
ReplyDeleteIt's definintly a blurred line between what is right or wrong to feel in a situation like this, but my own personal point of writing this post was to get out some of my very real and human emotions that needed to be felt and not ignored. Like I said in this post, I am 110% against the death penalty... so I was shocked at myself when I supported the death of Bin Laden. I believe that if you feel a certain way, you should really feel that emotion.
ReplyDeleteI have taken a lot of time to think about Bin Laden's family and even his followers and how they must look at what we did in the same light as 9/11... HOWEVER no citizens in the surrounding areas were killed and this was in retaliation to a man who is responsible for the death of THOUSANDS of people across the WORLD. Not only 9/11, but his other attacks have ended so many American lives and debilitated so many families, friends, and even onlookers. Two wrongs certainly do not make a right, but in this case... I feel that his death benefits humanity in the sense that he was not going to stop killing as long as he was alive.
I do not believe in war, and do not think any of our soldier's should be overseas to begin with, but unfortunantly this is not the world we live in. Am I a Bush supporter - hell no. But I do NOT think Bush is the same thing as a terrorist, and putting him on the same scale as Osama Bin Laden is absolute ludicrous to me.
There are too many people who have been hurt by this man, even in his own country, and I feel that the Universe is a better place for it. I don't believe in killing people for the sake of killing, but some one who has literally caused TERROR across the world is not some one that should be allowed to continue to do so. And this is coming from a person who is as far to the liberal left as humanly possible.