Newspaper covers hang on a wall near the World Trade Center site the day after President Barack Obama announced that Osama bin Laden had been killed. (Photo: Marcus Yam / The New York Times)
Now What?
“We need to counteract the shockwave of the evil-doer by having individual rate cuts accelerated, and by thinking about tax rebates.”
- George W. Bush, October 2001
There is something fundamentally crazy-making about the fact that Osama bin Laden, damned murderer of thousands, met his demise on the anniversary of the day George W. Bush, damned murderer of thousands, pulled his infamous “Mission Accomplished” stunt on the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln. I suspect that, had Mr. Bush managed to back up his big talk and actually bag bin Laden before his second term expired, we would have seen him jump out of an attack helicopter at Ground Zero wearing a SEAL uniform – complete with night-vision scope and even larger codpiece – under a banner proclaiming “Mission Accomplished II.”
You just know Bush would have done it, too. The core of his greatest strength was his utter and complete lack of shame. The fact that he said, “I don’t know where he is. Nor do I – you know, I just don’t spend that much time on him to be honest with you,” in 2002 would not have fazed him one bit. He would have smirked his way through it, and the mainstream media would have cooed over his masculinity and awesome presidential excellence.
So, at least, we were spared that madness. Thank God for small favors. Seems like that’s all we get these days.
I wanted to celebrate the death of bin Laden, and in my own way, I did. I didn’t dance in the streets or wave a flag or shout “USA! USA! USA!” But I definitely smiled, and I don’t apologize for it. There an old joke about a man who would buy a newspaper every day from a paperboy, scan the front page, and then throw the paper away in disgust. After a while, the paperboy asked him why he kept throwing the paper away. “I’m looking for someone in the obituaries,” the man replied. “But, sir,” said the paperboy, “the obituaries aren’t on the front page.” The man looked at him and said, “When the son of a bitch I’m looking for dies, he’ll be on the front page.”
Or, in the immortal words of Mark Twain, “I never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure.” That’s about right, and that’s enough about that.
Bush was a total failure and it makes me sick that the Rightwing Nutjobs are thanking Bush for what Obama has done.
Obama has done in 2 years what Bush couldn’t do in 8.
Oh rats, I keep answering and losing my replies because either they’ve changed my email or I’ve forgotten which I use. Wrote a nice response and it disappeared. I’ll keep trying. But yes, back from Miami, business trip but then new grandkid trip and more family stuff. I live in high rise so no tsunami damage and I prepare for the potential power outage.
I do check in – love your blog as always – but each time I try to respond it says invalid email. They changed the response to gmail and for some reason I can never remember it. Or something. I’ll keep trying.
All is well, hope that’s true for you also. Yay, Obama! The news is super fantastic.
Hi Kit!
It’s great to hear from you! I have missed your comments on the blog. Sounds like you have been very busy and I am glad that you are doing well. Still writing books?
I hope to see you around again soon!
S-Q