We’re going to try to take advantage of this opportunity we have now with the death of al Qaeda’s leader, bin Laden, to ensure that we’re able to destroy that organization. We’re determined to do so and we believe we can.White House counterterrorism chief John Brennan • Sounding a little boasty by saying that the next plan, post-Bin Laden, is to basically take down all of al-Qaeda. “We believe that we have damaged the organization, degraded its capability and made it much more difficult for it to operate inside of Pakistan as well as beyond,” he continued. Do you guys think he’s right, or just on a bit of a high right now? source (via • follow)
» Dodging a softball: Indiana governor and possible presidential candidate Mitch Daniels has made a strange choice in steadfastly refusing to release any statement on the death of Osama bin Laden. When Jennifer Rubin at The Washington Post e-mailed him to ask if he had any response to the news, his staff answered in one word: “No.” This is odd, as the death of the world’s most-wanted man is a) certainly newsworthy enough for a presidential candidate to bother responding to, and b) probably the easiest news for any politician to formulate a response to. You really can’t screw this one up; it’s a slam-dunk! Just say, “I’m glad bin Laden’s dead,” and call it a night. Rubin takes Daniels’ silence as a sign that he’s not serious about running for president, and we think she’s onto something.
Washington Post Express’ take on the Osama bin Laden story, May 3, 2011. Designed by Scott McCarthy. (Disclosure: SFB editor Ernie Smith works here when he isn’t posting pictures of cats. | via @adamgriffiths)
The courier who the U.S. tracked: Sheikh Abu Ahmed, known to U.S. officials only as Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti for a long while, is a Kuwaiti man and reported shadowy figure who was reportedly Osama bin Laden’s most trusted courier, according to information gathered by the Associated Press. (via @breakingnews)
A choice comment we received a bit ago. The key point is that there are people who ultimately sacrifice their peace of mind so we’re able to offer our opinions to the world. It’s the same type of thing that we emphasized in our coverage of the deaths of photographers Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros. We should emphasize the same with Bin Laden’s death. Ultimately, curators like us (and ProducerMatthew and Pantsless Progressive and Soup and inothernews and many others we’re forgetting) will drop everything and break plans to cover stories like these at 4 a.m. But it’s a sacrifice that doesn’t compare to soldiers, or wartime reporters or photographers, or victims of drone attacks, or those killed by suicide bombers. Ultimately, we’re trying to wrap our heads around a huge thing, but we’re not on the losing end of any of these struggles. What we’re doing here is important, but at the same time it’s nothing. What they go through deserves appreciation and focus. We offer that, but it’s from a guarded distance.
An article written under the pseudonym Mr. Y. grabbed my attention this week. The article has a bold thesis, even more surprising given who the mysterious Mr. Y turns out to be.
It argues that the United States has embraced an entirely wrong set of priorities, particularly with regard to its federal budget. We have overreacted to Islamic extremism. We have pursued military solutions instead of political ones.
Y says we are underinvesting in the real sources of national power - our youth, our infrastructure and our economy. The United States sees the world through the lens of threats, while failing to understand that influence, competitiveness and innovation are the key to advancing American interests in the modern world. Y says that above all we must invest in our children. Only by educating them properly will we ensure our ability to compete in the future.
We reblogged this from Bobby Caputo last week, and we’re reblogging it again because we think it’s a good reminder to everyone that, even though Osama Bin Laden was killed, we have a lot of other things to think about long-term. Now that we have this pretty big symbolic victory in the War on Terror to wear as a feather in our cap, it only becomes more important that we straighten our path as a country and move into a new direction, as our friend Mr. Y suggests. What do you all think?
Watching the mission to kill Bin Laden unfold.
Official White House Photo by Peter Souza :
President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, along with members of the national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House, May 1, 2011. Please note: a classified document seen in this photograph has been obscured.
The West Wing has totally spoiled me as to what somewhere called “The Situation Room” looks like.
Must-see TV.
Quotes from: Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee • Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney • Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty • Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann • Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin • Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pennsylvania • Donald Trump
The “playoff beard” to its logical extreme: Gary Weddle, 50, made a vow following al-Qaeda’s attack on September 11th, 2001 — that he wouldn’t shave until Osama bin Laden was captured or confirmed dead. “I spent my first five minutes crying and then I couldn’t get it off fast enough,” Weddle said. His wife, on the beard’s departure: “I respected his passion and keeping a vow. I was willing to look past the beard because I love him… He looks 10 years younger.” source
Insider insight into bin Laden mission: As stated by Obama administration counter-terrorism adviser John Brennan, the U.S. would have claimed bin Laden alive if possible, but the al-Qaeda leader and his allies started a firefight that led to his death. He also said that President Obama and his aides were watching the operation in real time in the White House Situation Room, which he called “clearly very intense.” No kidding! Brennan also revealed that there are, in fact, photos of bin Laden’s corpse, but the White House has not yet decided whether to release them — a sensitive decision to be sure. source