There was a bit of eery irony for me, as the news of Osama Bin Laden's death came to pass. Coming back from Flotown, I missed the I-95 turnoff around DC, and Matt and I went smack into downtown and Northern Virginia. We passed the Pentagon, White House and Capitol areas just before the announcement was made, and then we crossed the Verrazano Bridge into Brooklyn, with a clear view of the south end of Manhattan, where the World Trade Center towers once stood just afterwards... Safe to say, there are many who can say that.
Yes, Bin Laden is dead, and justifiably so.. So, now we have the question of where do we go from here? We don't think there is a lot of closure for the victims' families.... They are still gone, and no one's passing will fill the void of the loss of a loved one by such evil means.
Does this mean that the War on Terror is over? No, and far from it. We suspect that the cutting off of the head of the snake will lead to the eventual dismantling of Al-Qaida, and it's support of the Taliban. However, that will take time, and the total elimination of both groups is doubtful. We will be in Afghanistan and Pakistan for quite a while, but a downsizing in the next year or so is very possible..
As for Pakistan, we have mixed feelings: No, I'm not a big fan.. In general, Pakistanis hate us with a vengeance. I knew a guy named Amir (Prince in Arabic) a few years before 9/11, and this kid railed on how much America sucked and was Anti-Arabic... One of my co-workers suggest that he move back to his Pakistani shithole, and go fuck himself. My guess is he's there now, or dead in a sand pile in Waziristan somewhere.
Oh yeah, it was pretty embarrassing to find Bin Laden about three feet from Pakistan's West Point... Is all of Pakistan not to be trusted, and the money cut off? Not quite. Politically, I think we have decent support from a country that needs to walk a tough tightrope. The military? Big difference... I don't trust the Pakistani military, and this gives us solid proof. The problem is most of our support is military... To the tune of $2.5 billion a year.....
Decisions need to be made, but not just yet. Next year is a different thing... Bin Laden is gone, and the race to stamp out Al-Qaida now goes into full gear. Good riddance, asshole! We doubt you have 69 virgins in Hell..... Is it hot down there?
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