Osama bin Laden is dead and America is celebrating in such grotesque and macabre ways that some commentators have said such a celebratory mood is excessive and inappropriate. However this attitude of partying at the news of the death of a foe or opponent is a part of the American tradition, even when we did it to ourselves as.
I guess for some it was especially easy to celebrate because we attributed what happened on September 11, 2001 to bin Laden and we all know what happened and what it meant to our Country, but it signifies the continued deterioration of our Nation’s morality and spirit. We equated “justice” with assassination without blinking an eye and see no contradiction in that position. From the simplest of minds to the most classically trained in jurisprudence, there was universal acceptance that a dead bin Laden was one who met justice. We allowed ourselves to be ruled by the mob mentality that says justice is what satisfies us emotionally not what is right or wrong, even if our happiness isn’t based on the law we’ve been told since kindergarten we must assiduously obey.
We gave into our hatred…much like the throngs of Iranians who surrounded the American embassy during the hostage situation and shouted ‘death to America’ and in such a frenzy allowed ourselves to be judge, jury and executioner, without blinking an eye. Let’s not forget however, that when we’ve done that before this is how we looked.
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