Today began with enormous headlines, in the largest font I have ever seen, announcing the killing of Osama Bin Laden. Although he was undoubtedly a cynical, evil person, using religion as the justification of his own agenda and taking advantage of others' ignorance to fuel his own concerns, I remembered on reading of people dancing and singing in the streets, of rallying stocks, of general hoopla from a nation traumatized by 9-11 the passage from the Haggadah, the book used at the Passover Seder, where God tells his angels not to celebrate the death of the Pharoah and his armies because, after all, these were God's creatures too.
If we value human life, however we hate someone, should we really view that person's life as more dispensable, less valuable? We had little choice but to attempt to capture or otherwise cancel out his influence, and I would not have it otherwise than that, but to celebrate his death is a little too much, I think, to celebrate anyone's death.
Though I am inconsistent, being a meat-eater, and without a twinge swat flies and step on insect intruders in my domain, a human being is a human being, and life being what it is, it should be an occasion for at least a bit of thought when someone is killed, even an evil person. So I guess, as usual, I am raining on people's parade by not being jubilant. That's okay.
1 comment:
I had similar thoughts about it, and did not want to be too celebratory about a man being killed, even a terrorist. Plus, it's hard to celebrate when one contemplates the stepped-up plan of revenge Alcaeda undoubtedly has in store for us. Then, of course, if they strike successfully, we will have to retaliate (again). The cycle of terror and violence never ends.
Post a Comment