I remember September 11, 2001 like it was yesterday. I was a junior in high school and for the first time in my life, I felt truly scared. I was sad, I was shocked, I was angry, I was lost. I didn't really know how to deal with those feelings, it was like nothing I had ever had to process. I am sure anyone who was old enough to remember 9/11 feels the same way.
I remember when I heard the name Osama Bin Laden for the first time, I remember when I heard about Al Qaeda and the feelings that I felt when they, when he, claimed responsibility for the strike against us that changed forever the world we live in. I felt hatred, true hatred.
Now, I know what it feels like to have justice. Do I delight in his death? No, mostly because I think he deserved to suffer much more. I would have loved to see him locked away to live out the rest of his life in the terror of what might come tomorrow, much like we have for the past almost 10 years.
I keep reading things on facebook about how we shouldn't be celebrating victory, because a man died. Well why the hell not?! He was EVIL. He is ultimately responsible for THOUSANDS of innocents dying. He HATED the USA and everything we stand for. If he walked into a room that you were standing in, he would have killed you where you stood, simply because you are American. He wanted you dead, he wanted your children dead, he wanted your children's children dead. Why should we not be glad that this terrorist is gone?
We are victorious against him, he cannot hurt us anymore. He has paid his debt to us all with his life.
I keep hearing and reading about people's fear of retaliation, about how maybe we shouldn't have killed him because of the dangers it poses to us now, to our military now. We are Americans, and Americans don't run away from something just because we might get hurt. We don't think of our personal safety before that of those who need our protection. Our troops will stay and fight and protect, because they aren't afraid to die so that we can live free.
Am I worried about what might happen because we killed Bin Laden, yeah, but you want to know a little secret? I think about what kind of terrorist attack might happen every. single. day. You know why? Because we live in a 9/12 world. It could happen to us any day, anytime, anywhere. Yes, we have enraged them by killing Bin Laden, but we have empowered ourselves with a victory so sweet that I cannot even really tell you how it feels.
In the words of a man that I admire and respect:
"The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done." - George W. Bush
Thank you God for our troops, especially the US Navy Seals that took out the embodiment of terror for so many of us.
No comments:
Post a Comment