First thought on bin Laden’s death: May he burn in hell…and may each of his 72 virgins look and sound exactly like Roseanne!
Secondly, enough with the PC-speak. I don’t think a single red-blooded American was celebrating on Sunday night that Osama bin Laden had been “brought to justice.” They were celebrating that the son of a bitch was dead; that the lives lost on 9-11 had finally been avenged.
Avenged by whom?
Well, despite his chest-thumping credit-taking, not by President Barack Obama. By Navy SEALs.
Which reminds me, if you haven’t yet read “Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10” by former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, do yourself a favor and order it today.
Oh, and by the way, the U.S. decision to immediately bury bin Laden at sea will spark a conspiracy movement that’ll dwarf the Kennedy assassination….and even Obama’s birth certificate!
Speaking of Obama, let’s give a little credit where credit is due.
Indeed, the man did campaign on going into Afghanistan to find “the real killer” if elected president. And he did, indeed, give the order to take bin Laden out. However….
Was there a worse, more inappropriate, self-serving speech to the nation than the one B.O. delivered Sunday night?
It started out OK:
“Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaida, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of innocent men, women and children.”
He should have just ended it right there, closing with:
“As President Bush told our nation immediately after 9-11, ‘We will not tire, we will not falter, we will not fail…justice will be done.’ And so it was today.
“Let me congratulate our military tonight for a job well done, and reiterate President Bush’s promise to any remaining terrorists who have done, or may do harm to the United States. You can run, maybe even for a long time; but you cannot hide. We will find you eventually. And you will pay.
“Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.”
But that wasn’t good enough for the Chosen One. No, he had to wax poetic over this historic achievement, as well as pat himself on the back often and hard enough to create a high wind warning at the National Weather Service.
In his initial remarks – as if America needed to be reminded of who bin Laden was and what he did – Obama told us that it was a “bright September day” ten years ago that “was darkened” by bin Laden’s attack. The images of that day are “seared” into our memories; of the planes flying into the Twin Towers “through a cloudless September sky.”
And in remembering the victims, Obama reminded us of “the empty seat at the dinner table” and parents who would “never know the feeling of their child’s embrace” thanks to an attack that left “a gaping hole in our hearts.” He then reminded the nation of that wonderful post-9-11 time when “the American people came together” and “offered our neighbor’s a hand” and “offered the wounded our blood.”
Good grief. A JFK/Reagan-wannabe speechifier if ever there was one; shooting for the Guinness Book of Lofty Rhetoric Records.
But then the ravages of Obama’s “I-disease” took hold for all the world to see.
• “…last August…I was briefed…”
• “…I met repeatedly…”
• “…I determined that we had enough…”
• “Today, at my direction…”
• “I’ve made clear…”
• “Over the years, I’ve repeatedly made clear…”
• “Tonight, I called President Zardari…”
• “…and my team…”
• “These efforts weigh in on me…”
Yes, it’s all about Obama. It’s always about Obama. But why not? Obama is what it’s all about, right?
How sad. This historic event did not demand an historic, inspiring speech by the President. The event stood on its own. Short, sweet, “just the facts, ma’am” and be done with it. But Obama just couldn’t help himself.
Again, give the man credit where credit is due. But finally offing bin Laden doesn’t change the fact that Barack Obama’s only real skill set is….talking. And as we’ve unfortunately seen over the last 2 years, that is woefully insufficient.
That said, ding-dong, Osama’s dead! God bless the SEALs. If there’s any regret here, it’s that they are so damned efficient that bin Laden probably didn’t suffer much before he died. Oh, well. Nobody’s perfect.
