Stop The Sketch! It's Getting Too Silly!

The Great Abbottabad Raid is generating more fall out than the Japanese nuclear reactor--combined with Chernobyl.  Everyone is getting in on the act.  The Pakistanis, of course, keep on changing their story.  The Iranians are of the view bin Laden wasn't killed.  The Arab press is in a frenzy of angered denunciations.

In a quirky twist, the Taliban has taken the position that bin Laden died of "natural causes" and the US simply took advantage of its knowledge of this unfortunate act of Allah.  Well, that is no more over the edge than the massive outpouring of "deather" conspiracy theories which are littering the web like spam on growth hormone.

Over on the sidelines stand spokesmen for the Native American community.  These worthies are severely twisted in the panties department over the use of the name "Geronimo" in connection with the killing of bin Laden.  Being proud of the three eighths of his genome which comes courtesy of the Hot Springs Apache (of which Geronimo was a member), the Geek has to allow he was a bit bent out of shape at first.  Geronimo was an outstanding example of the irregular warfare leader who with a handful of his fellows waged protracted conflict against both the Americans and Mexicans before finally being captured.  He was held as a "POW" first in Florida and then at Fort Sill until his death in 1909 which captivity was both unjustified and legally questionable by standards of the day.  But, a bit of reflection removed the Geek's initial consternation as it should the Native American organizations as well.

The use of the name Geronimo was simply a piece with the usual cultural blindness of the white eyes.  As such it was microscopic in effect compared with the more lethal expressions of the same defect as the reservation system, the boarding schools, and the compulsory conversion to Christian religion.  To the outraged Native Americans, the Geek can only advise, "Get a grip.  It's not that big a deal.  Worry about the things that really matter."

In the things-that-really-matter department one also finds the contretemps over to whom belongs the most credit for the elimination of The Great Sheik of Sheiks, The Martyr of All Martyrs, Oh, Osama.  Here the partisans of George W. Bush square off with the advocates of President Obama.  This is akin to asking who deserved the credit for the first manned lunar landing, JFK or Richard Nixon.  In each case, the former committed the US to the effort but the culmination occurred on the latter's watch.  Most importantly, that which is never started cannot be finished.  That rather settles the matter from the point of view called rational, but politics, particularly the divisive sort associated with both presidents W. Bush and Obama, are not given to rational argument.

Far more serious is the outpouring of negative views of the successful American take down in Europe.  It is not surprising that the Archbishop of Canterbury has joined with the Vatican in being disquieted by the killing. Nor is it exactly shocking that a British historian specializing in US history would conflate the conduct and outcome of Boat Six's operation with the Wild West traditions of vigilante justice or even Pat Garret shooting Billy the Kid in the back as the Kid slept in a semi-drunk stupor.

At least one French outlet riffed on the Wild West theme, but with somewhat more positive implications.  The writer of this article correctly equated what happened to bin Laden with the endgame for Japan in World War II.  The Greatest Warrior Hero Of All Muslims made the same fatal error as did the Japanese high command before Pearl Harbor--grossly underestimating the long term will of the American people to avenge an outrage of humiliating proportions.  Back then it took us nearly four years and tens of thousands of killed to wreak a terrible vengeance.  This time it took almost ten years but, thankfully, far fewer good men dead to do the same to bin Laden.

Nipping across the Rhine to Germany and the rhetorical atmosphere turns dark, cold, and filled with dank disapproval.  The online version of a major circulation newspaper of purportedly center-right persuasion took the US to task in tones which were more than mildly condemnatory.  The left-wing Spiegel took precisely the same line in wording that was no harsher, no nastier, and showed no less comprehension of both the requirements of international law and the realities under which special operations forces conduct high pucker factor actions.  Indeed all along the continuum of political orientation in the German media, the situation was the same--the US committed a war crime by not assuring bin Laden was taken alive and brought to trial.

Unstated in this silliness is the reality that had the members of Boat Six been ordered to take bin Laden alive regardless of risk, that would have been done.  The men of Boat Six as well as all the other SEAL teams and special operations forces generally are so well disciplined, so highly motivated, so well trained that they carry out orders to the letter even when doing such exposes them to great risk.  However, we can be sure that the same people who now criticize the US for killing bin Laden would have carped at his receiving a fair trial in the US.

These same High Minded and Lofty Thinking people--including popes and archbishops, Islamic scholars and German media moguls--would have griped unendingly about the impossibility of the Americans providing a fair, open, and impartial trial.  They would have denounced any use of the military tribunals.  At the same time they would have alleged that no jury could be assembled anywhere in the US which could be considered impartial.

The demands for an international tribunal would be filling the ether today had we taken the Heroic Protector of the Koran alive.  Some would be urging that a special shariah compliant court of authentic Muslim scholars of Islamic jurisprudence be assembled to guard against cultural chauvinism.  The condemnations and demands would have accelerated to and beyond ludicrous speed.

The ever ready to dump on the US crowd in Germany and elsewhere in Europe need to get a grip on a ground truth: Bin Laden attacked the US in a most dastardly fashion.  The president of the time committed the US to a policy of vengeance.  His successor was obligated by the chains of political reality to carry forward with that commitment.  He, after the usual dithering, picked the only viable option.  The men of Boat Six had permissive orders which put the priority on saving American lives.  They did their job with perfection.  The perfection is underscored by the simple fact that only one hostile managed to fire at the assault force.

The core of a successful commando raid is that of giving the target no chance to shoot and no chance to run.  This was done.  Period.  The presence of weapons in easy reach coupled with permissive orders means the shooting of bin Laden was a "good shoot."  Period.

Just remember, all you critics out there in virtual land, all bin Laden needed to do to stay alive was to raise his hands.  Had he done so, we would be facing a host of other criticisms and complaints right now, but bin Laden would not only be alive--he would have access to the very best medical care--at no cost to him or his organization.  What a deal!  He should have taken it.

But, he didn't.  He chose to go out the way he had always wanted ever since courting death at Soviet hands.