Lots of government people- military and civilian alike- worked to get to this day. How bout FREE beers for them?
I woke up this morning to meet some friends for an early run (wait, don’t click away from this blog entry yet- it’s not about running). Having overslept, I glanced quickly at the internet as I downed my pre-run espresso. Like everyone else waking up this morning, I did a complete double take: “Bin Laden dead- justice has been served.”
Am I still asleep?
After seeing this headline, I immediately refreshed the page and then checked another news site’s top stories- mainly because I assumed this to be a delayed April Fool’s Day joke. Nope- as we all know now, this reporting is real, and my sickened yet hopeful desire that we had his body (and the photographs to prove it) was quickly granted with further computer clicking. Wow.
My friends- two U.S. Army types- soon arrived in front of my building. I met them downstairs and one of them reached out to shake my hand- a typical greeting here, but this time it was accompanied by an added a word of congratulations. For a second we all just looked at each other and shook our heads. It hadn’t really hit me until then that a ghost who has defined our careers over the past decade had finally been located and snuffed out.
I’m not the most overtly patriotic person, but standing there with two soldiers who have seen a lot of miles in the fight against terrorism immediately stirred up some emotion that I haven’t felt since the days surrounding September 11th. I think almost all Americans – civilian and military alike- experienced a feeling like this today.
I remember many years back seeing Robin Williams on a late-night talk show making cracks about the elusiveness of Bin Laden: “He’s a dude that limps through the mountains with a cane and is hooked up to a dialysis machine but we still can’t find him.” It was commentary that was funny but sad at the same time, and I for one imagined that he would evolve into a figure much like Elvis, Tupac, or Whitey Bulger- the stuff of legend where no one would ever know if he was dead or alive.
So yeah, he’s dead- but I don’t think we can ever say “Mission Accomplished”. In my opinion, that type of mission is crap- it’s more accurately about contributing to an overall life goal of stability for your family and community. I think for the past five years or so, Bin Laden’s capture has signified a symbolic victory for the United States. There are plenty more a-holes out there who are doing nefarious acts that will keep people like me in excellent job security for the rest of eternity. Nothing changed with today’s news, but I am certainly one of many who felt a sense of personal satisfaction in seeing him gone from this earth.
Much like it was when I raised my hand and took an oath back in 1999, I have no clue what the rest of my military career portends. Tomorrow we could have something horrible happen, or maybe the next day. Maybe not. You can’t take anything for granted- except perhaps the fact that Americans have the unflagging tenacity to follow through on things that they really believe in.
Today was just another example.