President Obama Announces Death of Osama Bin Laden

Everyone remembers where they were the day the towers crumbled. High school classrooms around the country hushed as teachers received the news, workplace phones rang off the hook with urgent callers wanting to confirm that what they’d just witnessed was real. It seemed as if the whole world stood still, gaping at this devastating destruction that violently shook Americans to the core. This was something that happened “somewhere else, anywhere else.”

We huddled around 24-hour news cycles with bated breath as the threat level hit every color on the spectrum and we were introduced to our new way of life – one filled with fear, suspicion and sacrifice.

Thousands of victims and heroes of that horrific event paid the ultimate price, but those left behind had their debt to pay as well. We took off our shoes and removed our belts, subjected ourselves to full body scans and searches, and carefully chose our words lest the Patriot Act pick them up over the airwaves. We sent our brothers and sisters in uniform overseas unsure if we’d be wrapping commemorative ribbons around trees instead of our arms around them upon return. We became suspicious of “them” and “the other” for a long time before realizing that “we” could easily become “them” by allowing hatred and ignorance to dictate our decisions. We learned to lean on each other, built memorials to those who lost their lives, and vowed to never forget.

Eventually the terror stopped glaring so brightly and we were able to refocus enough to function again. Consistently taking small steps (and flights) back to normal. Knocked back every so often with new jolts of terrorism, the American people persevered, ensuring that terrorists would not be rewarded for their malicious efforts.

Little did we know as we went about the business of rebuilding our lives and mending ravaged family trees, the government was quietly working to avenge its fallen citizens.

From the East Room of the White House President Barack Obama told the nation on Sunday May 1, 2011 that the mastermind behind this generation’s worst terrorist attack on American soil was dead.

“The American people did not choose this fight.  It came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens.  After nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war.  These efforts weigh on me every time I, as Commander-in-Chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who’s been gravely wounded,”

“So Americans understand the costs of war.  Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed.  We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies.  We will be true to the values that make us who we are. And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror:  Justice has been done.”

Questions to ask in the wake of Osama bin Laden’s death are piling up higher by the minute:

• What does this mean for us as a nation and the global community?
• What kind of backlash, if any, can be expected and what is the government doing to prevent it?
• What did the Pakistani government know about bin Laden’s existence and when did they know it?
• Is he really dead? What were the circumstances surrounding his death?
• Did bin Laden have a contingency plan or second in command to take up his cause?
• How are the families of those directly affected coping with bin Laden’s long coming comeuppance?
• Will this development change the tone of the 10th year anniversary of September 11th this year?
• Is there any such thing as “closure” at this point?
• What does this mean for President Obama and his administration in the upcoming election?
• Where do we go from here?

Hopefully in the coming days these, and several other questions, will be concretely answered. However, no matter where you stand on the war, how you feel about President Obama, or your feelings about the events leading up to September 11th, those who value freedom from fear and terrorism can agree that this – while not necessarily cause for celebration – holds a certain amount of relief.