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09/11/2003: "Yo Mama, Osama!"

Yes, our collective memories of the September 11th, 2001 atrocities are reaching their terrible twos. And, unless you've been in jail, in the hospital, or otherwise out of touch with the media, those memories have been freshened. They're ugly memories of fear and helplessness followed by outrage and anger. I still can't watch a large passenger jet at low altitude maneuvering to line up on the runway without remembering that chilling piece of videotape that turned up a day or two later, showing the second plane, from the rear, very low and looking huge, as it maneuvered to line up on the second World Trade Center tower. Jesus Christ, that plane was full of people looking out the window and thinking God knows what. We're reminded now of those images, the images of the World Trade Center towers collapsing, and of the army officer who worked in the Pentagon and whose son was aboard the plane that crashed into it. And, we should be reminded. Our collective memories have reached their terrible twos and now we are allowing our leaders to play politics with our outrage and anger. And, more importantly, we are allowing them to play politics with our national reaction. Click more.. below.

We don't have Osama, Saddam is still at-large, Afghanistan and Iraq are a mess, and where are the weapons of mass destruction? On and on the hand-wringers whine. Look, is the Sears Tower still standing? Yes, then so far so good. We are only human and we did what we had to do. Blindly? No. Should we be upset that our leaders lashed out with certain strategic goals in mind? That's what we pay them for isn't it? Anyway, it worked, and we'll sort the rest out as time permits. Should we feel guilty? Did we attack the right country? Let me put it this way.

Have you ever had friends in to play cards, and while the adults play in the kitchen, near the beer and food, all the kids go to the rec room or somewhere and watch TV or play Monopoly? Everything is fine for awhile until some kid comes out crying. Then the host is required to negotiate on the kid's behalf, or failing that, maybe cajole, warn, or even threaten in an effort to re-establish peace and return to the card game. All that's well and good, and pretty normal. But, once in a while, it goes over the top and you hear a crash and a scream and some kid comes out bleeding. Now, as the host, you are required to kick butt. Blood has been drawn and you know, without having to ask, that no one did it, and that he said, and then she didn't, and they didn't mean to...there is only one way to deal with this situation, I know it and you know it, you must storm into the room and snatch up a child and spank, rough up, and otherwise terrorize that child in full view of his peers. If you don't, the card game's over.

Certainly the stakes were higher with the squabbling Middle Eastern nations, and certainly we were the ones who were bleeding, but I believe the analogy otherwise still holds. You're never going to know who did it and you can't afford to care, but, if you want to continue to play cards, you have to kick some butt. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. And, yo Mama Osama.

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