Bin Laden Dead?

Nobody wanted the body anyway

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iatee otm

― estkella (k3vin k.), dinsdag 3 mei 2011 16:17 (15 minutes ago) Bookmark

nobody is rather sweeping

wtf did aquaman ever do to you

― And thusly create the illusion of babby (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 3 May 2011 12:17 (2 hours ago)

nobody is rather sweeping

Well they did ask the Saudis

Frankly i think 10+ years of bombing & occupying Muslim countries has done more to stoke the anti-US fires than killing this one guy, no matter how big a myth we've made of him.

― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Tuesday, May 3, 2011 10:26 AM (16 minutes ago) Bookmark

OTM

i wonder if the US is gonna drop the whole "Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror" thing now, and switch sides to India in exchange for trade guarantees

the wisdom-spin on Morning Edition was, well, Obama can't tell Pakistan they're grounded cuz they have nukes.

so I say
INVADE!

i wonder if the US is gonna drop the whole "Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror" thing now, and switch sides to India in exchange for trade guarantees

They could do it, but it would be a spectacularly stupid thing to do diplomatically.

They won't do that

pakistain is still a really dangerous and unstable potentially nukey-islamist hellhole

im sure the US cutting all ties would make everything fine though

"everything fine" an unshakable goal of enrique's realpolitik

The guy was already quickly becoming a fossil in his time, and there's some grim irony in the entire al Qaeda shtick about causing havoc to get popular sentiment against the US, leading to their own brand of regime change, when Osama was most likely reliant on the Pakistani ISS or even sympathetic individuals in the government.

I know it's not 100%, but the entire popular uprising movement that's been happening is killing al Qaeda as much or more than military action. They always claimed to be more of a resource center or clearinghouse for disparate groups, but that never really hashed out, and I think the idea of ObL as CEO of al Qaeda, Inc. is an idea that actually had traction within the group itself.

I still think that hanging from lightposts and screaming "USA!" in front of the White House is misguided and crass, and thinking that the death of one guy provides any sort of closure is still pretty misguided, but hey, sometimes symbolic things are worth it.

Oh yeah, and Pakistan is and always has been a clusterfuck.

pakistain is still a really dangerous and unstable potentially nukey-islamist hellhole

Not to mention the rampant paranoia over and persecution complex vis a vis India

i think i'd like that to happen, but you don't let nuclearized countries dangle

http://nationalinterest.org/article/mutiny-grows-punjab-4889

^ must read!

xps lol you get the whole argument in real time around here

sometimes symbolic things are worth it.

that's why I want Russ Feingold symbolically running against Bam once the postcoital thrill from this wears off.

http://i.imgur.com/KxuGl.jpg

That's some serious fruit salad.

Like he's going to need a bigger jacket if this keeps up.

i can't help thinking the general dude is like "omg this rebecca black video is the WORST!!! brb"

Pretty amazed that i don't know Sarah Palin's reaction on this news. Also relieved.

Do we actually know the names of the people who shot him?

i don't think so no

we never will

Like regardless of the moral or legal or political implications, just imagine being that guy. I can't work out whether he'd be all "what if I have to spend the rest of my life in hiding?" or "I never need to worry about getting laid ever again".

Pretty amazed that i don't know Sarah Palin's reaction on this news. Also relieved.

read CNN.com

basically, she's really appreciative of W

You never will. I know SEALs, they wont even tell you where theyve been the last six months.

xxxpost

I can't work out whether he'd be all "what if I have to spend the rest of my life in hiding?" or "I never need to worry about getting laid ever again".

Neither, because he's never going to tell anyone, EVER.

xxxp

How the GOP is getting the story wrong again.

GOP & former Bush admin notables trying to use this to justify the use of torture is the exact opposite of surprising...

Countdown to the cries of "THIS NEVER WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF NOT FOR WATERBOARDING" begin now.

― SteakNique (®2011 Ulillillia) (Phil D.), Monday, May 2, 2011 10:40 AM (Yesterday) Bookmark

Do we actually know the names of the people who shot him?

Chep Theodore Knollblazer Jr.

Really can't see how Bush buddies can truly claim the former Pres had anything to do with this at all, aside from his assist in promoting Bin Laden to arch villain in the first place. If Bush knew how to catch him, he would have. If Bush policies made it possible to catch him, they would have. Though I suppose the Bush admin was nothing if not defined by delusion.

The truth of a matter has never bothered them, so why start now?

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/05/surveillance-not-waterboarding-led-to-bin-laden/

still, would loooove to see Limbaugh endorse Obama for reelection

My boss is now claiming he has a link to the video. Am going to offer a generous bet on Rick Astley being on the other side.

virus

haha jason burke (observer reporter and author of a book on al quaeda) just got merked:

@burke_jason Jason Burke
unconfirmed but good source RT @azelin: Breaking! Al Qaeda Releases Bin Laden's Final Video http://youtu.be/cUKkm2MEfpQ

burke_jason Jason Burke
who was having a bit of a joke ... sorry .. is very later where i am ...
3 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

come on Josh, the intelligence on OBL has been a continuous thing, starting with Clinton. Obama may have given it fresh urgency - i don't know - but saying Bush (or more accurately, the CIA and armed forces during the Bush administration) had "nothing to do with this" is false.

"I know, right? Numbers is WAY better than Catch Bull at Four. I don't get why people think that one is so great."

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2011/5/2/1304330744836/Osama-Bin-Laden-in-a-cave-008.jpg

Tea for the Tillerman dude

pissing myself at the oSama/oBama pronunciation confusion. small things.

This is going to get buried in typical off-topic watercooler chatter, but I think that there's a bit more of a political powerplay going on than USA govt is letting on:

First off, India intel confirm the Osama reveal was a quid-pro-quo deal to stop drone/special ops activity in Pakistan:
http://expressbuzz.com/topnews/did-isi-sacrifice-osama-in-quid-pro-quo-deal/271012.html

3 weeks ago, top Pakistani military chiefs travel to USA to stop aforementioned activity (rising tensions against a "sovereign nation"):
1) http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2011/04/despite-us-pakistan-tensions-aired-at-cia-hq-cia-drone-strike-will-continue-officials-say.html
2) http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-13/us/29413489_1_drone-strikes-ahmed-shuja-pasha-pakistan-share

Another CIA/diplomatic envoy to try to patch things up:
1) http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iXYCLJk-0QdZ1anL_49a85mQz6Mw?docId=d2a920a1a24148faaa57995bdff3916b
2) http://www.dawn.com/2011/04/13/isi-sought-a-more-formalised-arrangement-relationship-on-solid-footing-cia.html

And now here we are, post-Osama assissination:
"US Defense officials thanked military leadership of Pakistan on intelligence sharing and successful operation against Osama."
http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=178566

Think the suggestion that the information that tipped them off came in six months after Obama took office says a lot about the urgency the Bush administration gave over to finding him.

I get how the quest for OBL has been constant, to varying degrees, for years. But catching OBL here, now? It sounds like it goes back to an intercepted phone call. Obv. Clinton and Bush has actionable intelligence at various points, but both failed to adequately capitalize on it.

Who gets the $25million reward, they guy they water-boarded for the info?

good post steve shasta

According to former RAW chief A S Dullat, the killing of Osama would serve a psychological blow to the hardcore elements because of his larger-than-life image. But, adversely, it could also lead to a spurt in terrorist attacks by a more determined lot. “We need to understand that Al-Qaeda has become more of a thought than a merely operational organisation,” says Dullat. That bin Laden was hiding deep in Pakistan gives credence to India’s claims about Pakistan’s complicity, said Dullat. “It is good that Pakistan finally cooperated with the US.”

However, another security expert, Ajay Sahni, differs. In his view, bin Laden’s elimination was a top secret operation done by the US alone and has increased problems for Pakistan, as it is caught in a dilemma whether to concur for providing help to the US in killing the Al-Qaeda leader or feign ignorance of his presence in a garrison town like Abbottabad where he was being “kept in an ISI safehouse”. “It is doomed either way. It cannot claim not knowing Osama’s presence nor can it say that the US operated on its own deep inside its territory without its knowledge. Pakistan establishment now should brace for severe Al-Qaeda retaliation,” he warned.

pretty wild! i think you have to take indian interpretations of events out of pakistan with a grain of salt tho

As predicted, nobody is reading my post.

It appears that there have been numerous meetings over the last 3 weeks between the Pakistan military (who seem to have been providing OBL safe-harbor near to their "West Point") and CIA culminating in a deal with the ISI providing the info and green light to take out OBL in exchange for no more illegal drone/special ops activity. Not quite a conspiracy theory, but yet a very different picture than what the White House is painting.