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* I’ve avoided doing this since we’re a state blog, but my mom just sent me an e-mail and, as is usually the case, I think she might be right…
I know it’s not usual for your blog, but I think you should have a post about Illinois citizens’ reaction to the killing of bin Laden or some such thing
Have at it, but I will impose one rule: Absolutely no partisan bickering. Thanks.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Statement from Jonathon Monken, State Homeland Security Advisor…
As the State Homeland Security Advisor to Governor Quinn, I have been in contact with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security regarding the death of Osama bin Laden. At this time, we are working closely with the State Terrorism and Intelligence Center (STIC) as intelligence experts there collect and disseminate information to our state and local law enforcement partners regarding this event. I am also in close communications with the Illinois State Police.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has indicated that it does not intend to issue a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) at this time. While our country remains at a heightened state of vigilance, we do not want the public to be alarmed.
As always, it is important for people to remain vigilant, be aware of situations taking place around them and report anything that appears suspicious to local law enforcement agencies.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The Sun-Times has some Chicago security updates…
A number of precautions have been taken, including having all police personnel in uniform. Key personnel with the Fire Department and Department of Aviation have also been notified to “remain vigilant,” the release said.
In addition, OEMC personnel have been actively monitoring cameras citywide, including those in the Operation Virtual Shield surveillance network with special emphasis on critical infrastructure. Those employees are also in contact with the police Crime Prevention Information Center to monitor cameras and share information.
City officials have also been in contact with the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, as well as federal and state law enforcement officials to share and distribute information, the release said.
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:17 pm
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As pleased as I am that OBL is finally dead, I can’t help but think of the lost decade we’ve had since 9/11. We’ll never recover what was taken from us, and we’ve fallen behind because of the need to go after al Queda.
But still, this is a great day to be an American. The SEALs who pulled this off will never, ever have to bring their wallets to any bar in the civilized world. Well done soldiers. Drinks are on us, forever.
Comment by 47th Ward Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:23 pm
Its an odd feeling.
I am very happy he is finally gone. I wish it would have happened so much sooner—I feel more lives would have been saved in our US armed forces. I’m very relieved to know what a huge morale boost this is for our guys in the service.
As a friend to a family who lost their 22 year old daughter in the Twin Towers, I truly hope this gives them some closure. I would understand absolutely if it doesn’t though.
Overall, many, many thoughts. Too many to list. But it is a great feeling to know that this murdering maniac of a coward is sinking to the bottom of the ocean somewhere and that he saw his death coming.
Comment by Ned Nudley Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:25 pm
Mess with the bull - get the horns.
Congratulations and thank you to each and every man and woman serving in our U.S. Military.
Well done.
Comment by just sayin' Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:29 pm
Glad he’s gone. But very, very anti-climatic for me. He hasn’t been the problem for the past 10 years.
Comment by PaGo Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:30 pm
Rich, maybe we should think what we were doing 10 years ago today? May 2, 2001. What a 10 years it has been, but all who have lost, suffered, grieved, and served, hats off to you. God Bless.
Comment by in absentia Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:31 pm
Congrats to all involved! Mission accomplished.
Comment by vote quimby! Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:31 pm
I thought, “I wish they caught him alive.” I do not want him to serve as a martyr.
Comment by Freight Train Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:32 pm
Never did a swine more deserve to die than this creature. Would that we could have done it sooner.
Congratulations and job well done to our fighting men and women and our intelligence community, who helped accomplish this brilliant and heroic action.
Still, I’m a little queasy about all the celebrating and cheering and jingoism. A very bad man is dead, having left much death and destruction and sadness in his wake. Stoic resolution seems more appropriate to me.
Comment by Ray del Camino Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:33 pm
It is hard to say I am happy anyone is dead, much less killed. But I’ll say it anyway. 47th and JS said this too…thank you to the Seals and everyone in the Services.
In the end, someone else who misinterprets what we say and do will pick up where OBL left off. Let’s introduce him to the Seals as well.
Finally, nice to see a bit behind the curtain about the ways in which this was planned an implemented. Makes one respect our intelligence and leadership again…and the Democrat President who has no battle experience.
Comment by Mongo Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:36 pm
9/11 happened during the first week of my freshman year in high school, and the death of OBL puts an odd punctuation mark at the end of my adolescence and ascent into adulthood.
Comment by JL Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:38 pm
I was actually elated when I heard the news last night. Relieved, too…as if problem, however faded, was finally gone forever.
OBL was one of the most truly evil men in the world’s recent history. He slaughtered innocents. He debased a great religion. He changed how we all live, and cost us some freedoms that I fear will never come back.
Credit to President Obama for taking the risk on a raid, rather than just bombing OBL to smithereens. Obama knew closure would only come with proof of death.
Major credit and gratitude to the brave individuals who carried out the raid with no losses on our side. You are all truly heroic in the epic sense of the word.
I put my flag out today; it felt good. God bless this diverse, energetic, wondrous nation. May the USA continue to be strong and an inspiration for the world.
Comment by phocion Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:38 pm
very proud to see our military and intelligence pull off a raid at a secure compound, maintaining a secret, and was glad to see that he was killed rather than captured.
Comment by Robert Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:42 pm
I want to send out props to Obama, and the joint efforts of our intelligence and military operatives.
It was a good decision to go after UBL once we had the intelligence. This decision extended from the presidential order made by Bush in 2001, and I am glad that Obama continued to pursue this strategy to eliminate UBL. It is interesting that the information leading to this operation came from two GITMO detainees.
I think it was wise to kill, not capture, UBL. I applaud Obama for this decision. It took guts and I think it ran counter to Obama’s beliefs. After so many years, UBL was probably no longer a source for actionable intelligence. His capture would have only resulted in his being a living martyr for his cause, and would have resulted in yet another agonizing debate over trials in NYC, GITMO and/or rendition. Dumping the body at sea also was a good move, there are no places where shrines to UBL can be created. Let’s hope we buy the property in Pakistan and raze it to the ground.
We now see that Obama has finally realized that all his statements and promises he made as a Senator running for office have been trumped by the reality of his duties as Commander and Chief. Kudos. And good riddance to UBL.
Comment by Cincinnatus Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:42 pm
Glad he is gone.
Comment by How Ironic Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:49 pm
It always pains me when I have to tell Mom no. I find no confort in killing anybody, but mission accomplished.
Comment by Palatine Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:51 pm
note to cincinnatus (who apparently didn’t listen very well when senator running for president):
in barack’s own words, “We will kill bin Laden. We will crush al Qaeda. That has to be our biggest national security priority.” he made this promise to the nation in a october 2008 debate with your guy. mccain, of course, had already promised to to do just the opposite.
mccain probably thought ubl was irrelevant, too.
president obama: promise made. promise kept.
Comment by bored now Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:55 pm
I was about to report for jury duty when the first tower was hit, remember thinking it a strange accident. Needless to say no trial that week.
Kudos to those who brought this about. However it sure begs a lot of questions. How highly placed were those who were hiding him. We flew two or three choppers that deep in country had a fire fight and back out with no local involvement? Then after what happened in Iran we have problems with the Chopper. More to come on this story I’ll bet. And how long before the tin foil hat club has him being held at gitmo. Charlie Sheen will not be getting air time soon.
Comment by Bemused Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:56 pm
I’m relieved that a risk to the world has been removed. He was not, however, the first person to discover that acts of violence against civilian populations can be effective and he won’t be the last to use those tactics. I think the vigilance used against Al Qaeda’s financing was probably more useful at the time than taking out bin Laden would have been. It’s still nice to see the risk gone. I’m glad none of the Seals were killed.
I’m also glad that Pakistan’s government and military are taking this so well. One might conclude that they are glad to be rid of them too.
Comment by cermak_rd Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:57 pm
I think many of us were convinced that OBL was either already dead, or was a sick man hiding out in a remote dingy cave and had lost most of his power in AQ. But the size and location of his compound near the capitol of Pakistan and his active couriers suggest he was still quite involved in terror.
This is what Mayor Giuliani said this morning and I think his statement is pitch perfect:
“I feel a great deal of satisfaction that justice has been done, and I admire the courage of the president to make a decision like this because if something had gone wrong everyone would be blaming him,” Giuliani told POLITICO Monday morning in his first comments since the capture. “And I admire the courage and professionalism of our military intelligence officials who carried this out and this is a great victory against terror. Nobody can minimize it. He was a symbol more than anything else right now but … symbols are really important.”
Also, the WH having revealed that the information about the identity of the couriers (which led to locating the compound) came out of enhanced interrogation at Gitmo cements the role and seamlessness of the Bush and Obama administrations when it came to catching OBL. Our country needed to see this.
Comment by Responsa Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:57 pm
This is a great win for the USA. We set out to hunt down UBL and we finally achieved it. Clandestine mission with no casualties into the middle of a large, sophisticated country, whose troublesome recent history with us was no impediment to the mission, is an impressive display of capability. This will resonate around the world and inspire the “second thoughts” of those who want to act against our interests. Most importantly, justice was done, as POTUS said, and that alone was reason enough to pursue UBL til the end.
Comment by Conservative Republican Monday, May 2, 11 @ 12:58 pm
After the relief washed away, my thoughts turned to Muammar Gaddafi. I’m betting he doesn’t think he’s so invincible to capture or death right now.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:01 pm
bored now,
Let’s not go into the out of Iraq in 14 months, closing of GITMO and trials in NYC. Obama did indeed keep his promise to get UBL, I’ll grant that. Many promises made, this one kept.
Comment by Cincinnatus Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:02 pm
Ha! Right on, Rich. Especially after we put the missile in his tent a few years back, and took out his youngest son last week. I’m actually surprised Gaddafi is still upright and breathing…
Comment by Cincinnatus Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:05 pm
the word President Obama used is justice. the team’s instructions were to kill, not capture. for those who find state sponsored killing problematic, that word justice, and the overwhelming outpouring of support for the action, is what I mean when I say justice for victims of murder. the people killed on 9-11 were murdered. the leader of their murder was killed by the government, and justice is the result.
Comment by amalia Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:06 pm
As the parent of young kids, this has been hard to explain to them. While I’m overjoyed that he is no longer a threat to the U.S. or anyone else,it’s hard to explain the glee people feel that our country killed someone. It’s having an impact that the country is celebrating the death of someone who looks so different from us. I worry about the lasting effects this will have.
Comment by Anonymous Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:08 pm
amalia, this was an act of war, not jurisprudence. A just war at that. And therefore justice was, indeed, done. Let’s not bring capital punishment into this. War is not a judicial proceeding.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:08 pm
It has been a rough decade of warfare in the United States and around the world. It has cost us so much.
The events of the last day do not end the pain, risk, or damage done, but they were necessary steps for the future. I am relieved that these troops and this president were able to accomplish this mission.
Comment by Boone Logan Square Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:13 pm
The cause for rejoicing here is not so much the death of one man, however depraved, as simply the significant (though by no means final) step the US has taken toward ending one of its longest wars. We’ve been in Afghanistan for almost 10 years now and OBL was, ostensibly, the main reason we were there. Perhaps this is the equivalent of D-Day in the War on Terror?
Comment by Secret Square Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:20 pm
Get the drones and/or Seals ready. I’m banking on Ayman Al Zuwahiri (terrorist #2) moving out of his mansion in the very near future.
Comment by PublicServant Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:28 pm
Amazing operation by the American military. What courage.
As the details emerge, though, it reinforces just how badly we’ve been getting played by the powers that be in that part of the world.
Bin Laden wasn’t hunkered down in some cave. He lived in the biggest house in a nice town, surrounded by the Pakistani army. Pakistani intelligence agents were at the compound.
We’ve been bankrolling our “partners” there and in Afghanistan, and they’ve played us for chumps for many years.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:29 pm
This was an occurrence that will be burned in my mind forever. Even though I am an ardent Republican, I have never supported the Iraq War and am even iffy on our continued involvement in Afghanistan. I will admit that President Obama has done a very good job with national security and military ops. He has scaled back our Iraqi presence and now his military - and it is his since he is the Commander-in-Chief - has brought down the world’s most wanted man. I have always been skeptical of our disinterest in Pakistan and even wondered what Musharraf was hiding. Perhaps now we will never know.
Comment by Team Sleep Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:31 pm
Killin’s too good for him.
– MrJM
Comment by MrJM Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:33 pm
I commend the President for making what had to be an extremely difficult decision. Some tougher decisions need to be made in the future. We have “allies” in the form of Pakistan and Turkey who often were less than helpful during our military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq, prolonging our actions in both regions. We have other “allies” who also aren’t for many reasons.
We have two wars to extricate ourselves from and perhaps a third in Libya or somewhere near that region awaits us. We have tired dictatorships in the entire middle east region facing uprisings and Egyptian elections which may or may not be rigged. We have giants in China, India and Russia awakening economically and we now feel their economic muscle on multiple fronts.
We have to decide if we are going to maintain standing armies in various locations in the world including Germany, Japan, Korea and parts of the middle east. We have to redefine who our “friends” are out there and who our “acquaintances” are, and look closely at our role in NATO and other defense treaties.
Our nation has changed dramatically after 9/11 when unarmed civilians were killed through the actions of this madman. Our freedom of travel was made more difficult, we now go through “security” in hundreds of buildings and all airports in this country and think nothing about it. Our economy has been suffering and we have gone through two spikes in gasoline prices with this new one representing the third. Most of us feel our standard of living has declined since that attack.
I congratulate the President. He has a lot to see through in the near future.
Comment by Louis G. Atsaves Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:37 pm
The only reason I am going to the Sox game tonight is to sing the National Anthem with 20,000 other people.
Comment by Time Keeps on Ticking, Ticking Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:37 pm
excellent plan and execution. very gutsy to go so up close and personal, rather than use a drone. i expect to see photo confirmation within a few days.
wonderful persistence. we got the nickname of the courier in 04 thru strenuous interrogation, but didnt identify him til 07 or 08 and didnt locate him til 09 or 10.
Comment by langhorne Monday, May 2, 11 @ 1:49 pm
Interesting that the way it came about was use of so much Bush regime methodolgy that runs counter to Obama regime promises - boot-on-the ground capture of KSM (not remote drone killing) to Gitmo detention and ‘enhanced techniques/torture’ interrogation (not civilian trials with full 5th Amendment treatment), etc.
If he was living in a mansion in a developed (relatively) area of Pakistan, we may need to reassess the extent to which he wasn’t actively running AQ lately.
Comment by titan Monday, May 2, 11 @ 2:00 pm
I recall the chilling moment when I stood, with hundreds of others on the lawn of the Capitol Building, mourning the souls lost on 9/11. God Bless America. Land that I love.
Comment by Easily Entertained Monday, May 2, 11 @ 2:22 pm
as we all agree God Bless the US Military all branches !! Its rotten to also say,it will be hard for me to do biz with an establishment on any sort that displays a green flag with white cresent moon and star !!! I strongly believe the Pakistani Govt. knew he was in a mansion and did little to assist, it was the courage if intel and our troops. My thoughts are for those of 9/11 still having to live this tragedy!
Comment by railrat Monday, May 2, 11 @ 2:25 pm
That’ll learn ‘em.
– MrJM
Comment by MrJM Monday, May 2, 11 @ 2:42 pm
Wonderful event! Can’t wait for the movie. Hope they use the original SEALS. They’ve earned the stardom.
Comment by gathersno Monday, May 2, 11 @ 3:13 pm
We will undoubtedly hear the threats of repaisal from the terrorists. But if I were national security advisor to the President I would suggest that his reply be, “You evil doers/terrorists seem to have misunderstood. We are not yet done seeking justice. That was just the first of many missions. All of the resources we have been using to seek Bin Laden will now be diverted to hunting down Zawahiri and others just like him. We are coming for you!”
Comment by One of the 35 Monday, May 2, 11 @ 3:48 pm
He resisted arrest and got killed in the process. I have no issue with that and I oppose the death penalty. Saved us all kinds of issues about where to keep him and half the nut jobs in the world coming after Americans to try and get him released.
The world is a better place for Bin Laden’s departure.
Comment by Aldyth Monday, May 2, 11 @ 3:52 pm
I am elated he has met his maker, however, why in the heck would the government bury him at see. That is the weirdest thing I have ever heard. Something is amuck there folks. Hmmm.
Comment by Ain't No Justice Monday, May 2, 11 @ 3:58 pm
I’m not cheering Bin Laden’s death, but I feel great satisfaction in knowing he’s gone. Anyone who plans the death and destruction of thousands deserves no less. Had he been captured, instead, it would have been more of a rallying cry to the rest of his followers. Justice for the 9/11 victims and their relatives has finally been achieved!
Special appreciation for the intelligence and military forces that ended this monster’s career.
Go SEALS!
Comment by Wensicia Monday, May 2, 11 @ 4:09 pm
“A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability.” -POTUS
Translation:
“So I called Rahm up and asked him if he was busy…”
Comment by Dirty Red Monday, May 2, 11 @ 4:14 pm
“why in the heck would the government bury him at (sea)”
Because 1) no sane country would allow him to be buried on their soil; 2) Muslim law requires burial within 24 hours and this was probably the best/safest way to accomplish that; and 3) a grave, even if unmarked, would probably become a shrine/rallying point for other Al Qaida members.
Comment by Secret Square Monday, May 2, 11 @ 4:21 pm
Hopefully this will remind US citizens that we have so many men and women fighting for our freedom. I’m afraid we tend to forget the hardships of the military, I know I have been guilty. A friend told me her son is finally being releived from combat and will be home safe shortly. I can’t wrap my head around what some of these brave men and women are doing day in and day out.
Comment by Because I say so Monday, May 2, 11 @ 4:27 pm
@SS
I also think placing his body out of reach prevents the public spectacle of having his coffin possibly paraded through the streets by his supporters.
Comment by Wensicia Monday, May 2, 11 @ 4:33 pm
–Credit to President Obama for taking the risk on a raid, rather than just bombing OBL to smithereens. Obama knew closure would only come with proof of death. –
The more I think about it, and the more I read today, the more I agree with that statement and admire the president’s guts.
That’s no vacillating, Hyde Park, no-bowling, Arugulla eater. That’s a South Side dude willing to go all in for high stakes.
This was no sure thing. Sending commandos with no backup into a heavily fortified compound which is obviously under some protection of the host government (your supposed ally), surrounded by soldiers, and you’re not absolutely sure the Most Wanted Man in the World is actually there.
The risks for the mission were off the charts — to those who performed it and to he that ordered it.
When you read about the helicopter malfunction, for many of us, memories go back to Desert One and the brave but star-crossed mission in Iran in 1980.
This one could have gone bad in a hurry, too. The existential implications for the soldiers would have been grave, as they would have been for the political fortunes of a president who took office in some very distressed times and has had to make one tough call after another since Day One.
But it went spectacularly. Serious work, by serious people, not the bloviations of cable TV and A.M. radio yabbos.
What valor and courage by all. Surely, this is something we can all rally around?
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 2, 11 @ 7:02 pm
–POLITICO Breaking News
————————————————-
The assault force of Navy SEALs snatched a trove of computer drives and disks during their weekend raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, yielding what a U.S. official called “the mother lode of intelligence.” The special operations forces grabbed personal computers, thumb drives and electronic equipment during the lightning raid, officials told POLITICO. “They cleaned it out,” one official said. “Can you imagine what’s on Osama bin Laden’s hard drive?” –
Alright, folks, let’s wipe ‘em out!
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 2, 11 @ 7:23 pm
As I posted on my FB page a while ago, there are some awfully frightened terrorists out there right now. Good.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, May 2, 11 @ 7:37 pm
–As I posted on my FB page a while ago, there are some awfully frightened terrorists out there right now–
In the Pakistani and Afghan governments, too, I suspect. Hear that noise? That’s the Gravy Train leaving.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 2, 11 @ 7:43 pm
My take on the Death of Osama is that it could be this generation’s version of the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. As far as military success, it was just a flea bite, but it created a perceptual shift, a shift in morale, far out of proportion, and really reflected a shift in the tide of the war. Osama was by now kind of superfluous to his network, and it will still continue after him, but the psychological closure it may afford some Americans could signal a large perceptual shift in how we go forward from here. I didn’t party at hearing the news, just as I wouldn’t celebrate at having to put down a rabid animal. And I don’t think you can find a 9/11 victim that will say this totally wipes the slate on behalf of their lost loved ones. But maybe, just maybe… we’ll shift the nation’s psyche back away a bit from a totally defensive bunker mentality, and open up a strategy of engagement and leading by fostering understanding, while still maintaining vigilance and security.
Comment by Gregor Monday, May 2, 11 @ 8:47 pm
it will be hard for me to do biz with an establishment on any sort that displays a green flag with white cresent moon and star !!!===
I don’t want to in any way defend Pakistan, as I think they are in cahoots with the Taliban, but I sometimes we forget how easy it is for people of some int
Comment by Been There Monday, May 2, 11 @ 11:04 pm
it will be hard for me to do biz with an establishment on any sort that displays a green flag with white cresent moon and star !!!===
I don’t want to in any way defend Pakistan, as I think they are in cahoots with the Taliban, but sometimes we forget how easy it is for people of some intelligence to disappear. Especially if you blend in. Just remember Joey “The Clown” Lombardo next time you are getting a Johnny’s Beef.
Comment by Been There Monday, May 2, 11 @ 11:08 pm
–I don’t want to in any way defend Pakistan, as I think they are in cahoots with the Taliban, but sometimes we forget how easy it is for people of some intelligence to disappear. Especially if you blend in.–
Been There, Osama wasn’t scuffling around some bungalow in Elmwood Park.
The World’s Most Wanted Man was in a fortified compound, the biggest spread in the nicest town in the region. He was hiding in plain sight of the Pakistani army and intelligence, not in some cave like our pals there had told us over the years.
The heroin kingpins and generals in Afghanistan and Pakistan have been playing us for chumps for ten years, taking our billions as “allies” while being complicit in killing our sons and daughters.
They’ve played both sides against the middle, confident in the knowledge that one day we’d be gone, just as every other invader since before Alexander.
We were a cash cow, and they bled us dry. Shame on us for not following the Weinberger/Powell Doctrine from the get-go and bringing the house.
Enough.
But, in the future, I’d be more interested in hearing the thoughts of our friends in India and China on Kashmir. Everyone can play the long game.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, May 2, 11 @ 11:57 pm