The Night Osama Bin Laden Died

[Sophiegirl]

I know that this isn't recent news, but I live just outside Washington DC and this moment meant a lot to me. Particularly now that our President has another four more years.

Recent events have reminded me of the importance of our efforts to combat and destroy Al Qaeda.

So, at that time, I was watching the Mets game when the news broke that Bin Laden had been killed. I was in my comfies and despite the fact that a ballgame was on (I'm a baseball addict) I threw on some jeans, a sweater and a jacket. Fumbled with the password on my cellphone to call a cab and grabbed my camera. The cab showed up within 10 minutes. I barely had time to put my sneakers on. Once I told him where I wanted to go, he hit the gas in a way that was worthy of a Mission Impossible movie.

The link below is one of the pictures I took that night. There was a huge crowd. To me, while this pic might be a bit out there for some, it made me proud that these young folks heard the news and spent just a bit of time to gather together and express their patriotism.

Call me crazy. A little bitty, old woman, calling and jumping into and out of a cab in a mass of people, in the middle of the night, just to take pictures of a momentus occasion and a crazy crowd just to capture the spirit of that night. But, when you carry a camera that weighs more than you do, people tend to leave you alone. Damn it was great!!!!

I did find out a bit later, that DC cabs don't take credit cards, or at least they didn't at that time. So I wandered the streets until I found an ATM to pull some cash. Note to self: keep some cash on you for emergencies!!!

My hubs was not particularly happy with me that night. He takes better pics than I do, but he was sound asleep and I didn't want to waste time getting him up, dressed, etc... He is a very sound sleeper, so that meant waiting at the least a half hour. Time was essential!! He takes more time than the most fussy women do getting dressed (sorry, women). I, on the otherhand, looked pretty much like, well...you probably know.....

I'm not that Internet savy, so I am sorry for posting a link instead of a picture. But I like this moment in time.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/httpwwwflickrcommandys_photos/8215294099/in/photostream

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. It's a great story, Sophiegirl!

You tell it well. I felt the drama and your excitement...

Thanks for sharing it with us!

And the picture is excellent...

[Sophiegirl]

4. Thank you. I have several more pics from that night...

But they are on my other computer that has suffered the blue screen of death. Hubs can recover them, but we haven't done it yet. Been too busy with our daughter's wedding pics as well as other things.

One thing I have learned from him is that maybe out of one or 100 pictures, you might get two or three that are worthy of publishing. The rest are either blurry or just simply bad. I have a lot of the bad ones. Lots, actually. Practice makes perfect, eh?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. Practice does indeed make perfect, LOL!

Hey, I just sent you a DU message.....have a look.

[oldhippydude]

2. ironically i was in the baltimore area.. that night

one of the 2 times i have been near the capital... a service group i belong to, was having our annual national conference.. my room mate for the conference was a Fox Bot... it was the only time that Fokkks news was too chagrined to badmouth President Obama..

[bluestateguy]

3. I knew that night that Obama would likely win

That Republicans would lose the sledgehammer they had used in so many past campaigns: Democrats are sissies who are weak on foreign policy.

[Sophiegirl]

5. Geez!!!

I didn't want this to become a political debate or 'pub attack.

I just wanted to share a moment of joy that meant a lot to me. Nothing more, nothing less. Almost sorry I posted this. I may self-delete if this is how the conversation is going to be.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. It's OK.......they're just remembering that night in their own way...

It's a good post.......I hope you leave it.

[Gore1FL]

8. I thought there was a new Paper Lace song.

In the heat of a mid-spring night
In the land of the falling rupee
When the man named bin Laden died
And they talk about it with glee

When a president named Barack
Ordered a surgical attack
And he called seal team 6 to war
With the terrorists they saw

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night bin Laden died
Brother what a night it really was
Brother what a fight it really was
Glory be

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night bin Laden died
Brother what a night the people saw
Brother what a fight the people saw
Yes indeed

[Sophiegirl]

9. I like it.... n/t

[Hekate]

10. Thanks for sharing this memory

I thought it was a significant moment, too, and rather sorry I couldn't be there. (I live on the Other Coast).

What surprised me in the following days were a couple of Op-Ed pieces criticizing the spontaneous celebrations as crass displays of jingoism and joy at the death of one man who after all wasn't the whole of Al Qaeda. Really?

For me it was kind of like Il Duce being hung upside down in the public square. No, Mussolini wasn't the whole of the Axis, but he was a major power in it and his death a powerful symbol that his part of WW II was effing over.

Osama bin Laden planned and financed the attacks on the World Trade Center, which was a blow to the national psyche like nothing else we've ever experienced. Immediately after that Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld cast an evil spell over this country and presented us with the USA PATRIOT ACT (it's an acronym, though most don't remember that). We've been through hell thanks to Osama bin Laden, even though some of it (e.g. the PATRIOT ACT and the Iraq war) was self-induced.

Celebrate the death of the man who kicked it all off? Why the hell not? I still fail to understand those who chose to bitch about it. Thanks for being there, Sophiegirl, and for sharing the memory!

My bumper sticker for the election season, which will remain on my bumper forever:

Bin Laden -- Dead
Detroit -- Alive
Barack Obama -- 4 More Years

[yurbud]

12. I like that in the context of the bumper sticker

[graham4anything]

11. I like that it was done old school- and that was cool

and the helicopters, the method, there but for the grace of a damaged helicopter in 1979, (or possibly sabatoged one),
Jimmy Carter would have won reelection freeing the hostages

and our presidents election and even nicer reelection has been the ocontinuing resurrection of Jimmy Carter's good name.

Thanks for the post!

[yurbud]

14. in the Carter mission, the military wasn't prepared for the environment

now we have a track record of working in desert environments (unfortunately).

[Third Doctor]

13. I remembee heaving a long sigh of relief on finding out that OBL was dead.

I didn't celebrate but I knew that we as a country had turned a corner. OBL chose his path and died for it.

[yurbud]

15. for me it was more like Obama was a parent showing a child there was no boogey man under the bed

whereas the Republicans wanted to use the boogey man to get the kids to do their chores and give them money for boogey man repellant spray.