Quote:
Originally Posted by PackersFan
I hear ya, but honestly, there is no 'Right" way to dispose of his remains. There will still be an Al-Quada, there will still be Muslim extremists who hate the the west, there will still be war, and there will still be terrorist attacks. I grant you that it may increase the violence, but just because he is dead, doesn't mean that the violence stops.
Many will carry on their Holy War in his name now that he is dead, just as they did when he was alive.
They (Muslim extremists) never show the our soldiers, journalists or tourists that they kill any burial rights. They never show fear of us retaliating against them, so why should we show fear?
They didn't show any concern for our innocent civilians on 9/11, or suicide bombings, so why should we extend them the courtesy of not bombing zones that harbor terrorists for the fear of killing their innocent people.
Throwing him into the sea was the right choice, but there was no reason to broadcast to the whole word that you did it in the Muslim tradition.
We have to stand up for ourselves, our people, and our beliefs.
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This violence won't be solved overnight, even with the death of bin Laden. It will take generations to weed out the hatred that he and his ilk have sewn in the idealistic, the ignorant, and the desperate. The traditional islamic rites and burial at sea show that even in the face of al-Qaeda's barbarism and inhuman methods, America refused to capitulate and stoop to the same level of barbarism. Very mature, very humbling, very honourable. It is what separates them from common thugs. When an oppressed civilian population gets caught between two factions, whom do you think they will run to for protection? The guys that have been spouting that America is evil and must be destroyed, the same guys that won't hesitate to grab you and put you between them and their guns? Or the guys you have been taught all your life are the enemy, who despite everything you've been told, refuse to fire upon anyone unarmed? You won't win any hearts of the enemy, but others caught between the two this and feel a pang of respect and appreciation that American's retained the dignity to give Osama the rites appropriate to his culture.
I agree, we have to stand up for ourselves, our people, and our beliefs. And among those beliefs is the cultural stigma that we don't use civilians as human shields, our women are equal in importance to men, and our soldiers to not desecrate the bodies of their enemies.
I'd like to add at this point that we all know perfectly well America's record isn't perfect. Civilian lives have been lost at their hands. Atrocities have been committed by both sides. Indeed, it's easy for me to sit safely and comfortably in my office chair and preach about honour, respect, and dignity when I have never seen a shred of military combat. Those values I preach offer little comfort to the soldiers that have had to witness their comrades in arms killed in combat, maimed by a roadside bomb, or executed in cold blood. We are all only human, and we are all weak. But this act, this ONE act of dignity and honour at the hands of the Americans is a BIG step towards setting things right.
Finally, the name eludes me at the moment, but one of our regular contributors has a signature: "Dear Lord, please help me be the person my dog thinks I am." Eloquent and appropriate in this situation, for the opposite is also true.
"Dear Lord, give me strength, courage and conviction, so that I may never become the man my enemies say I am."