Osama bin Laden, Thankfully Deceased

O.K. He’s dead. Shot twice in his face, his lifeless body was unceremoniously dumped in the sea and fed to the fish like a Mafioso who had somehow offended the bosses.

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Osama bin Laden died as he lived, surrounded by murderous violence. His executioners, some of the most efficient in the trade, put a couple of slugs in his brain, wrapped his body in a sheet thus paying homage to the traditions of his faith, and fed him to the fish, as our American mob bosses are wont to do with those who displease them. John Brennan, the administration’s chief spook , a New Jerseyite and no relation of mine or of my distinguished Brooklyn family whatsoever, can take credit for the successful conclusion of the war on Osama bin Laden, but he also bears the Brennan name, and brings new honors it. This operation was conceived and planned during the Bush administration, and to his honor, was carried forth during Barack Obama’s term of office. It was a serious move, filled with possibilities of very public failures, and to his credit, Barack Obama, made it his own and carried it through to spectacular success. Let it be noted that the initial intelligence that enabled the administration to put it into action was partially due to the process of water boarding, a method of interrogation that was widely and publicly condemned by the president and his supporters. That however, is all past history. The President used what he got from such methods and it paid large dividends. For the moment a least, he’s more or less immune from attacks by Donald Trump and his supporters. He got bin Laden and that’s no small thing. And unlike the Donald he has a healthy head of hair, crew cut and graying, but healthy nonetheless. Given the fickleness of the American electorate, the glow surrounding him now will sooner of later fade, but at the moment, he’s all but invincible. Even my fellow Brooklyn Prep alumnus, the very partisan Rep. Peter King (R-NY), was full of praise for the President. That’s no small thing. Now comes the aftermath. The Pakistanis are not happy. The whole thing took place on their turf. The target was living in a seemingly lavish three storey compound in a very high toned neighborhood and his presence there could have been no secret to his Pakistani neighbors who could not have enjoyed having been objects of international scrutiny. When I first came to Washington, I shared an office with among others, an American academic who was doing something or other for our landlord’s clients, the Pakistani government. That was as close as I came to having any connections to Ayub Kahn and his fellow Pakistanis. They seem like a nice sort, however. They always struck me as a vibrant bunch of warriors while their neighbors and sworn foes, the people of India, came across as a different kind of bunch, scared silly of their Pak neighbors. Having since been associated with a number of people from India, and thanks to my Brit fellow journalists having become addicted to their food, I’m now more or less neutral in the Pak vs. India matter. None of that has any bearing on the matter of bin Laden’s long overdue demise. He’s gone, and the world is the better off for it. Good work, Navy Seals. You make me realize we are in good hands. Semper Fi