r / May 1, 2011 10:24 PM

Fireworks are going off in my neighborhood. Unbelievable!

Took long enough to, as Bush II said, "smoke him out of his hole."

I hope this gives the troops overseas resolve that there is an end to this (although I think things will get worse, as splinter groups fight to get attention in the wake of bin Laden's death)...

Nuke LaLoosh / May 2, 2011 8:46 AM

I'm pleased to hear the news, but it I feel more grimly relieved than celebratory.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 8:52 AM

First, really, really happy he is dead, and that is was us that killed him.

Second, while I am only a moderate fan of Obama,I find it sadly par-for-the-course that many on the right wing are denying him even a shred of credit for this thing, preferring instead to heap all the praise on W. If that is your logic, then certainly you don't mind that we heap all the blame for the economy on W, too, right?

Third, further proof, if needed, that our true enemies after 9/11 did NOT include Iraq, as vile as that country's dictator was. Our true enemies, based on the backgrounds, training and harboring of those Islamic radicals who attacked us, were such countries as Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and, to a certain extent, Syria.

Finally, I don't believe in childish visions of heaven and hell, but this is one time I wish I believed in the idea that certain people (ObL, to be exact) burn for eternity.

Dennis Fritz / May 2, 2011 9:14 AM

No tears from me about the passing of this murderous thug. However, I think it will become increasingly obvious over time how little he had to do with anything. The US war in Afghanistan will continue. Bin-Laden was always just a pretext, not a real reason in the grand scheme of things.

Mucky Fingers / May 2, 2011 10:03 AM

I'm just waiting for the 'birthers' and Tea Party wackos to spin this.

I'm expecting a re-tread of the Manchurian Candidate crap: Obama used the U.S. Armed Forces to dispose of his main rival. Freed from competition in providing leadership to those radical Muslims, Obama can now control Al-Qaeda from the comfy confines of the Oval Office.

I'm also sure Fox News will begin ranting something along the lines of he-took-too-damn-long-to-do-this.

WAJ / May 2, 2011 11:01 AM

Fricking Awesome News.

I'm giving equal credit for the Obama and Bush administrations, and the operational groups that have made it happen. If it was an easy task, it would have been done long ago. I especially give credit to the Obama folks for keeping key Bush people in their roles - the continuity obviously paid off.

This also gives the country an uncontentious reason to start drawing our troops down in Afghanistan. If both parties have no reason to object, it can actually get done.

Lastly, I'd like our gov't to call a review of any aid that we currently send to Pakistan, and halt it. It is obvious that their intelligence community had notice where Bin Laden was located.

RRS / May 2, 2011 12:05 PM

We finally found something that staunch Liberals and the Tea Party have in common...they both think Matthew 5:38 > Due Process.

Why didn't the Pakistan Military lead this raid, it was in their country...right?

Why didn't we capture him? Why did we assasinate him?

Americans celebrating this assasination really scares me.

C-Note / May 2, 2011 12:11 PM

I feel bad. I don't sanction political assassination, and I don't see the silver lining. All I see is killing.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 12:21 PM

"I feel bad. I don't sanction political assassination, and I don't see the silver lining. All I see is killing."

I am confused about why you and others on this thread would feel bad about us killing this guy. Through his funding connections and force of personality, he was one of those who created the attack on us that killed thousands of our citizens--a classic act of war by nearly any definition, classical or modern. We simply killed an enemy commander who continued to wage war against us--even with his diminished power--and continued to serve as a potent force for those who still wage war against us. This was a person who supported the wholesale slaughter of all those--Arab, American, European, whatever--who did not conform to his reactionary views about religion and world politics. What on earth is there to be worried about in being happy that this person is finally dead? The world will be a better place without him.

I'm not saying the USA hasn't made many mistakes since 9.11, and even more before then that indirectly led to the attacks. I am only saying I do not understand the reluctance to celebrate the death of such a person as Osama bin Laden.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 12:23 PM

"Why didn't the Pakistan Military lead this raid, it was in their country...right?"

Are you serious? If so, I urge you to pay closer attention to world affairs and also to make better use of your critical thinking skills.

RRS / May 2, 2011 12:47 PM

vise77...great point. I wish those were my words...sadly I stole them from a BBC report. The speakers point was to show America's stronghold on that region...imagine another country's military coming into America and apprehending someone.

Sorry buddy, some of us don't celebrate 'death'.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 12:58 PM

"Sorry buddy, some of us don't celebrate 'death'. "

Then you are a much better person than am I. I was happy when Saddam was killed (I thought the war was stupid, but Saddam is about as close to evil as you get in this world and I was glad to see he received his proper punishment), am very happy what ObL is dead, and have been equally happy when other mass murderers have died. I guess I am not as enlightened or as moral as some of my fellow citizens. Oh well.

B / May 2, 2011 1:00 PM

I think Oprah is probably pretty pissed off that this didn't happen a week ago.

David / May 2, 2011 1:54 PM

One of the great hypocrites of modern times is dead.

Bin Laden preached continuous jihad based on a backwards-looking set of twisted religious principles and held the West and its culture in utter contempt. However, he was more than willing to exploit the products of Western culture (jet airplanes, the internet, etc.) to forward his aims.

Now if, as I hope, George W. Bush will be raped to death by a pack of wild dogs in the near future, we'll be two-for-two in getting rid of destructive, narcissistic hypocrites.

WAJ / May 2, 2011 2:07 PM

Political assasination? Huh? I didn't know Bin Laden was threatening to run in 2012? In his own words Bin Laden was at war with the US and all of its citizens.

"some of us don't celebrate 'death'"

How about placing a minimal amount of value on the lives of the 3,000+ of your countrymen who died in 9/11 by celebrating the justice they and their familiy received by Bin Laden's untimely end?

And please pick up a history book.

In 1916, Pancho Villa raided Columbus NM, killing 10 US citizens and several more US soldiers. The US responded by sending General Pershing and 10,000 troops into Mexico.

Just to name a few others off the top of my head:
Barbary Pirates - early 1800's
Columbia's FARC raids - 2010
General Noriega - 1989

"Why didn't the Pakistan Military lead this raid, it was in their country...right?"
http://gulfnews.com/news/world/other-world/compound-in-pakistan-was-once-a-safe-house-1.802539
Put two and two together RRS

David - in the wake of congresswoman Giffords shooting, don't you remember that you are supposed to keep political rhetoric civil? I mean, who wishes for the rape of someone else?)

RRS / May 2, 2011 2:16 PM

Death justifies death? Remind me again who the terrorists are.

David / May 2, 2011 2:23 PM

Don't blame me, blame the pack of wild dogs.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 2:30 PM

"Death justifies death? Remind me again who the terrorists are."

I know you are just playing a game here, but here goes: The terrorists are the radical religious nuts who, essentially, would like to see the world revert a few centuries to some twisted version of what they think Islam should be. The USA is the country that, while making many, many mistakes in the past, was justified in responding with all its force* to an act of war that killed some 3,000 citizens.

And yes, in war, death justifies death. What do you expect to do: Talk radicals such as AlQ out of their tree houses? I wish the world were much more like Sesame Street, but that ain't life, buddy. You know that, though. Deep down you know that.

*not that we have used all our force in this struggle, mind you. Not even close.

RRS / May 2, 2011 2:41 PM

From "The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 is to be awarded to President Barack Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

To "CIA Director Leon Panetta gave the go-order about midday Sunday, after President Obama had signed off on it."

Don't sum up people who are opposed to this type of action as "I know you are just playing games here"...your type of person already does that to sleep well at night while there is war, killing, assasinations...enjoy the sheltered life you've built at the expense of the rest of the world...only to mock anyone who questions it.

No bullshit, not everybody is a war mongerer like you.

P.S. that's not the definition of "terrorist" Merlin.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 2:49 PM

"No bullshit, not everybody is a war mongerer like you."

Just because one thinks that some wars are justified doesn't make one a war monger.

I would love to live in the simple worlds of the left- and right-wingers. So much easier than the real world.

As for the rest of your ramblings, I don't speak graduate-student pacifist, so I will need a translator.

WAJ / May 2, 2011 3:13 PM

Vise - I wouldn't bother. Its just a pose - the kid was probably a pre-teen on 9/11.

I especially liked the "enjoy the sheltered life you've built at the expense of the rest of the world". You know, 'cause your burgoise life was built on the backs of poor Al Qaeda (WTF?)!

Interesting tidbit from AP -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/officials-cia-interrogators-at-secret-prisons-developed-first-strands-that-led-to-bin-laden/2011/05/02/AFHjfCZF_story.html

"Officials say CIA interrogators in secret overseas prisons developed the first strands of information that ultimately led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Current and former U.S. officials say that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, provided the nom de guerre of one of bin Laden’s most trusted aides. The CIA got similar information from Mohammed’s successor, Abu Faraj al-Libi. Both were subjected to harsh interrogation tactics inside CIA prisons in Poland and Romania."

So this confirms that there was valuable intelligence gathered from the waterboarding sessions.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 3:21 PM

WAJ--Osama, along with many of his cohorts, and a handful of the 9/11 plot leaders, were 1) from upper middle class families; 2) very well educated: and 3) pretty damn rich, at least if you account for their families.

Trust me, I was never as well off as they were.

But, what's the point, right? Some people think in slogans, some don't.

RRS / May 2, 2011 4:14 PM

The Imperialistic nature of America is something that the likes of ObL mentions, and also is something he was spot on about.

Any type of life one leads in America is on the backs of the rest of the world.

You don't have to be in the upper 1% of the wealth to lead a life that was made on the backs and blood of other countries. Read a little more Howard Zinn.

This my fall on deaf ears because you have to first be wide eyed to America's Imperialistic place in the world to think that Obama's choice to murder ObL is a sad day in our Constitutions history. No slogans needed. ;-)

vise77 / May 2, 2011 4:32 PM

RRS: Do you get paid by assumption? Or the slogan?

"Read a little more Howard Zinn."

How much more, considering I've read just about everything he's ever written. And I would bet I've read a bit more history and politics than you have, kid. Get the hell over yourself. I suspect you make yourself feel smart when you pass off slogans as original thought, but remember, it's only a feeling.

(And you seem to think I am some Cheney fan boy, which is out of synch with all reality).

In any case, I am glad Osama is dead.

vise77 / May 2, 2011 4:40 PM

"Any type of life one leads in America is on the backs of the rest of the world. "

Yet here you are, another imperialist at the computer, which was made in a poor country, and whose plastics were made using oil from another country that is under our imperialistic boots.

RRS / May 2, 2011 4:42 PM

vise77...you and I have more in common than you give credit. Howard Zinn was a great man, I've met him several times...I've read about everything he wrote...he too would be against this.

Knowing Zinn's work like you "claim" you do, it seems odd you do not understand that America has acheived what it has through the blood and backs of the rest of the world. Admittingly, I got that from Zinn.

What the hell did YOU take from his books?? How to justify murder?

vise77 / May 2, 2011 4:51 PM

"...it seems odd you do not understand that America has acheived what it has through the blood and backs of the rest of the world. "

In other news, kid, the sky is usually blue when there is no cloud cover. And water typically is wet.

You remind me of me when I was about 9 or 10 and I realized that not everything in the world is Sesame Street.

Advice to you: Leave behind your simplistic thinking and learn to form your own thoughts. Zinn was a decent writer and wrote about things that were often shamefully ignored, but he was, often, the master of the obvious.

Or not. I mean, no one really changes his or her mind because of some stranger on the Internet, right? This is just two drunks at the bar shouting past each other, more or less.

Have a good day, as I'm bored.

RRS / May 2, 2011 5:06 PM

vise77..have a great day buddy. I hope I didn't come off as if this were a yelling match.

You made some good points, some errors and all in all it was a good game of catch.

Maybe brush up on your Zinn a little more...perhaps your have forgotten history more than you claim you 'know'.

It's odd, though, you being so pissed off that someone else is saddened that America has strengthened its Imperialistic stronghold on the world through the murder of ObL.

One could say you are 100% out of touch with the world by being happy this happened.

Who should America kill next?

You're not bored, you would not have responded 3 times if you were 'bored'. I learned that last semester in Psych 101. :-)

Mateo / May 2, 2011 6:46 PM

I haven't read this website in years, but now living outside of the states I thought it would be interesting to see what some Chicagoans had to say. But as usual, it's just a bunch of petty righteous back and forth, which is why I abandoned this site even before leaving Chicago.

Andrew Huff / May 3, 2011 12:12 AM

Wow, Mateo, you popped in to see "what some Chicagoans had to say" and found essentially three people fighting amongst themselves, so you wrote us and the whole city off again? And we're petty? Good riddance.

Charles / May 3, 2011 11:23 AM

If I was Monday night quarterbacking, perhaps I would ask about how exhaustive efforts were to extract Osama alive. I heard he resisted and was shot. It was a necessary action; we are at war with al-qaeda, and it was fortunate that no Seals were harmed or killed during the op.

Dan R / May 3, 2011 7:02 PM

I don't think anyone is sad to see him go in the least... I am a little uncomfortable with the fireworks and celebrating crowds.
It is nice to have a "win" in the America column... it's been awhile since we've had one of those.

Sam / June 27, 2011 4:48 PM

"You remind me of me when I was about 9 or 10 and I realized that not everything in the world is Sesame Street."

You learned that at 9-10? That's old to realize something like that.