Everything in Its Own Time

I know on first glance the title of this may very well upset many people, because it theoretically could imply that Osama bin Laden deserves any degree of respect. That is not my intention. There are negative legacies, and this is decidedly one. This legacy is one of fear, intolerance, stupidity, political posturing, and a myriad of other negative actions and attitudes that have become a part of the American way of life since September 11th.

While this is arguably the biggest news since the 2001 attacks, I have been intentionally avoiding writing a single word on it. This is nothing new for me, since I tend to wait and see what the lay of the land is after at least a little of the dust has settled. In the days following the official announcement from the White House, there have been pundits running about offering their opinions on everything from bin Laden’s impact on American culture to whether or not how the Navy disposed of the body was religiously appropriate. Monday morning quarterbacking of the mission itself has moved beyond the sublime to the absurd, when one considers the faux-debate over the use of the name Geronimo in the raid. (To be fair, there are far more substantial issues for the Tribal Nations collectively to bring to the table, and admittedly, this offers them an excellent opportunity to do so. I hope they take it. *Thank you to Tony Brown for pushing me to think about this issue more.)

If one was looking for any signs of mourning in the Muslim world, we were told not to expect it – bin Laden’s death was apparently a happy moment for them, if for different reasons from the ones that caused jubilation at Ground Zero and Washington, D.C. We were even given a naïve explanation from the generation that probably can’t remember what life was like before bin Laden about why they took to the streets to celebrate his death. Why they think that they somehow “own” this part of history is questionable, but they are still young and have much to learn.

The White House gave us an iconic photograph of the Situation Room during the raid, and Secretary Clinton attempted to explain its context. As I write these words, the President is laying a wreath at Ground Zero, and (appropriately?) decided not to speak on that hallowed ground today. While Secretary Clinton states that the U.S. will continue to stand by Pakistan, the Pakistani military is stating that they want the ouster of the majority of the U.S. Military from their soil. We even saw a professional football player trip over words about bin Laden’s death on Twitter, and later try to clarify his position.

But the dust is still flying, and isn’t showing any signs of settling. It’s been said – not often enough – that the way we have lived for the past decade isn’t really a testament to our resiliency or strength. We have falsely contented ourselves with the fact that we haven’t seen repeated attacks on U.S. soil (although we have seen a few foiled), claiming that there is real value in the fact that we’ve also surrendered many freedoms to that end. We are still living in the shadow of bin Laden, and will continue to do so until we decide that our freedom is more important than creating the illusion that we are safe. We will never return to life as it was before September 11th, and rightfully so. We were foolishly arrogant in our thinking, assuming that we were impervious to terrorist attacks. However, if we continue to live as we have, perpetually in fear of another attack, bin Laden has won even though he is dead. It is up to us. There must be a middle-ground between what life in America was on September 10th, and what it is now. Is it time to reassess our way of life, or do we continue with the status quo and become bin Laden’s legacy of fear?