This.

 

I believe we did the right thing. But I cannot bring myself to the point of elation or cheer. We did what needed to be done. Now we move on.

 

That's how I look at it as well. I've never been a USA! USA! chest-thumping type, but I'm extraordinarily happy with the result. I can certainly understand how some are moved to cheer.

 

If I'm tempted to cheer; it's due to the fact that a maniac is out of the picture and that hopefully as a result, many innocent lives will be saved. That I can cheer.

 

I'm with you guys.

My take on it is go ahead and celebrate quickly. Then get back into the game. This thing isn't over. Our men and women are still over there fighting for freedom.

 

 

Last night Osama was sacked and knocked out of the ball game. Taliban has put in the back up QB. So USA needs to get focused on the goal and that is winning the game.

I don't have an issues at all with the cheering.

You need only type in "V-E Day" or "V-J Day" into Google Images to see how long standing this is in the United States. Granted, yesterday & today's celebrations may not be a celebration of world peace in the same sense as it was in 1945, but I think the fact that Osama Bin Laden is no longer roaming freely and directing his terrorist minions is certainly something worth being very happy about.

 

I can only assume that Bin Laden's death (and the celebration of it - no matter how justifiable it was or wasn't) will bring on some retaliatory attacks, but I think that is inherent to rooting out ridding the world of the evils of religious terrorism.

 

Another thought on V-J Day: The UK celebrated it on August 15, 1945, and the US celebrated it on September 2, 1945...not very long at all after Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. The dead in Hiroshima is estimated between 90,000 and 166,000 and the dead in Nagasaki is put between 60,000 and 80,000. That killing was completely indiscriminate - there were civilians women and children included in those dead. That's a far cry away from the small handful who died while resisting during the raid on Bin Laden's compound. People across the world celebrated. How many posters and prints of the famous "V-J Day in Times Square" adorn the walls of romantic high school and college girls?

 

Were the V-J Day folks cheering the deaths of the Japanese or rather the fact that the war was over and that their loved ones would soon be coming home? The war against terrorism is not over and I doubt the death of Usama will cause loved ones to come home any quicker; ironically it may cause our soldiers, airmen, sailers and Marines to stay abroad even longer if Usama's death spurs retailatory actions abroad and spurs 100s of men and women to join al Quida.

 

Obviously I'm not "in the know", but I wonder just how effective Usama had been recently as the leader of al Quida. I wonder whether he will be more effective as a martyr to the terrorist cause than he had been the last several years as a holed up leader with limited capabilities to lead. Some folks are more effective dead than they are alive.

Were the V-J Day folks cheering the deaths of the Japanese or rather the fact that the war was over and that their loved ones would soon be coming home? The war against terrorism is not over and I doubt the death of Usama will cause loved ones to come home any quicker; ironically it may cause our soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines to stay abroad even longer if Usama's death spurs retaliatory actions abroad and spurs 100s of men and women to join al Quida.

 

Obviously I'm not "in the know", but I wonder just how effective Usama had been recently as the leader of al Quida. I wonder whether he will be more effective as a martyr to the terrorist cause than he had been the last several years as a holed up leader with limited capabilities to lead. Some folks are more effective dead than they are alive.

 

I wouldn't really disagree with anything you said here. I don't think people were really cheering the deaths of the Japanese, no, but I do think the fact that they were cheering the end result of two atomic bombs being dropped only days after it occurred could have certainly had the appearance of insensitivity. My point was to demonstrate that in celebrating victories in wars, conflicts, and military actions, what appears right or wrong to the defeated hasn't ever been much of a consideration by many of the victors. Time will tell how it plays out with the remaining terrorist al Qaeda cells.

I'm not going to lie. The cheering bothers me. Perception is reality. And I really feel that the coverage of the cheering presents a shallow view of the real feelings of Americans. I can understand why Americans are cheering. It's just that the media coverage of it can't capture the reality of the cheering. It's the same as I feel when I see anti-American cheering in other countries covered. Yes, those people are cheering. But it's never as simple as it's portrayed to be.

 

I guess it's not the cheering that bothers me, it's the media coverage of it that does.

Were the V-J Day folks cheering the deaths of the Japanese or rather the fact that the war was over and that their loved ones would soon be coming home? The war against terrorism is not over and I doubt the death of Usama will cause loved ones to come home any quicker; ironically it may cause our soldiers, airmen, sailers and Marines to stay abroad even longer if Usama's death spurs retailatory actions abroad and spurs 100s of men and women to join al Quida.

 

Obviously I'm not "in the know", but I wonder just how effective Usama had been recently as the leader of al Quida. I wonder whether he will be more effective as a martyr to the terrorist cause than he had been the last several years as a holed up leader with limited capabilities to lead. Some folks are more effective dead than they are alive.

 

Take a seat...maybe strap into your chair....I agree with all you've said here.

Maybe not cheering for the death, but people are cheering for justice?

I think that's the best way to look at it. The loss of any soul is a tragedy; but Osama relinquished his long ago. His fight was not a fight for God; it was a fight to pursue his own vicious ambitions. I do not cheer the death of a person, but I do cheer the successful elimination of a threat to humanity and the serving of equitable justice.

Edited May 2, 201115 yr by Birdsfan

That is the problem. In their mind it was justified to kill all of those innocent people. Might be easy for us to see but not them.

 

I'm not a big fan of cheering. I'd rather take the "that's how we roll" stance. Swagger.......

 

There is no justification for killing someone who is absolutely innocent. Let alone thousands of innocent people. Anyone who felt there was justification for those murders is an extremist.

 

There's a big difference in cheering the death of an absolutely evil person, who is responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent people.

Even though I'm happy he's dead, I do feel bad about feeling that way. I do not think Christ would be jumping for joy if he was walking around with us today.

There is no justification for killing someone who is absolutely innocent. Let alone thousands of innocent people. Anyone who felt there was justification for those murders is an extremist.

 

There's a big difference in cheering the death of an absolutely evil person, who is responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent people.

 

Completely agree. My only point was that what we view as "normal" is not the same as every other person in every other country.

I woke my son up this morning and told him the news..He came downstairs after gettin dressed and asked me.."dad, as Christians are we suppose to be happy a person died?" I thought for a moment and said.."he would kill your family in a heart beat, and he would rejoice about it".

 

In the Old Testament we have many stories of war and in some cases women and children were killed by enemies of God's chosen people. And God allowed this to happen.

 

66 years ago on this day it was announced that Hitler was dead.

I woke my son up this morning and told him the news..He came downstairs after gettin dressed and asked me.."dad, as Christians are we suppose to be happy a person died?" I thought for a moment and said.."he would kill your family in a heart beat, and he would rejoice about it".

 

In the Old Testament we have many stories of war and in some cases women and children were killed by enemies of God's chosen people. And God allowed this to happen.

 

66 years ago on this day it was announced that Hitler was dead.

 

You really didnt answer the question. As a religious person, do you think it wrong to celebrate or even be happy that he was killed? I am interested in knowing what you think.

Completely agree. My only point was that what we view as "normal" is not the same as every other person in every other country.

 

I don't really care what those around the world think. This man was personally responsible for killing thousands of Americans and would have killed more given the opportunity. Many rejoice in the streets of middle eastern countries when something bad happens in America or to America. Why should we care what they think?

You really didnt answer the question. As a religious person, do you think it wrong to celebrate or even be happy that he was killed? I am interested in knowing what you think.

It's the proverbial "moral tightrope."