Rock Ed’s Gang Badoy expressed her reservations about the burgeoning street parties celebrating Osama bin Laden’s death. “It’s a weird reason to chest bump,” she said on Twitter. “But what do I know.”
I agree with her. While it’s understandable that U.S. citizens (particularly those who were affected by the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon) would want to toast the downfall of Osama, founder of the jihadist al-Qaeda and self-confessed mastermind what is referred to as “the worst attack on American soil,” street parties seem to be a knee-jerk reaction to an event that still has unforeseeable consequences.
Some, particularly those who immediately visited Ground Zero in New York, saw it as a sign of closure. After all, the quest for justice for the 3,000 people who died on September 11 had taken over nine years, and had claimed several thousand more lives around the world in George W. Bush’s resulting “war against terror” in the years that followed.
Make no mistake about it—symbolically, bin Laden’s death deals a strong blow to the al-Qaeda network and its allies. After all, being able to evade capture the U.S. government (with its deep well of resources) for nearly a decade is no small feat, and al-Qaeda’s resistance could be seen as inspirational, with bin Laden as the poster boy for resistance against American forces. However, as Time’s Mark Thompson points out, “Bin Laden’s death only excises a tumor… Whether his demise marks the end of a particularly virulent strain, or will trigger a violent recurrence, remains unknown.”
Thus, footage of Americans drinking and dancing to bin Laden’s death could trigger a nerve somewhere on the other side of the world, and be a cause for retaliation. Anticipating retaliatory attacks, authorities increased security in key areas, particularly in New York, Washington, and U.S. embassies around the world.
With a yet-to-be-revealed chain of consequences after today’s events, it’s difficult to exult in bin Laden’s death, because it doesn’t necessarily equate to al-Qaeda’s downfall. And for many ordinary people (particularly those who aren’t from the U.S. but have to live with the crippling consequences of 9/11 on the world), his capture and killing will not have visible results—at least, not for now. Nine years is a long time to wait, and the anger, fear, and helplessness that people felt upon seeing the planes crash into the Twin Towers have been reduced to concerns about convenience: “Do we still have to take off our shoes at the airport? Can we bring liquids in our carry-on baggage now?”
Osama bin Laden’s death is a colossal marker near the end of what Time dubs as “the decade of war and fear.” In a recap of the 10 Defining Moments of the Post-9/11 Era, which is studded with wars and bombings around the world, Gilbert Cruz noted, “Though the man behind 9/11 is dead, the fallout from that day—war and fear—remains.”
It’s hardly a cause for celebration.
i couldn’t agree more. bin laden is not the modern recruiter of al-qaeda and the terrorist attacks, i’ve always thought it’s the system itself. there was this interesting article from The Economist that says al qaeda has become like private franchising, bin laden doesnt have to be there or that he doesnt have to be alive for it to operate and profit. they have “perfected” the system, it can stand on its own.
oh, here:
http://www.economist.com/blogs/clausewitz/2011/05/osama_bin_laden