Various Bits on Osama bin Laden's Death

This is one reason why I think bin Laden's death will be more than just symbolic: Osama bin Laden raid yields trove of computer data "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 that killed bin Laden, officials told POLITICO."

Also, I think this will give us cover to start getting out of Afghanistan (at least by the election).

I see no reason not release photos of bin Laden's body. First I think we need to provide evidence. Second I don't think photos will incite retaliation any more than his actual death will. Third I don't think fundamentalist terrorists who broadcast beheadings will find them gruesome.

At first I found the burial at sea to be an odd choice but I think I get it. Islam forbids cremation. Since he was so against US bases in Saudi Arabia, I can see his followers being quite upset about a burial in the US. Saudi Arabia (where he's from) didn't want the body. So burial at sea seems to work.

This surprised me, Teens Don’t Know Who Osama Bin Laden Is, According to Yahoo! Search Trends "However, it seems teens ages 13-17 were seeking more information as they made up 66% of searches for ‘who is osama bin laden?’"

TPM writes GOP's Tortured Logic: How We Got Osama Bin Laden "Like so many memes that persist in politics, this one started on the Internet. The morning after President Obama announced that Osama bin Laden had been killed in Pakistan, conservatives started crowing that credit should be given to President George W. Bush -- specifically, for having the foresight and courage to torture the people who provided the initial scraps of intel that ultimately led the CIA to a giant compound just north of Islamabad."

"But then the AP updated the story yet again, adding this crucial detail. 'Mohammed did not reveal the names while being subjected to the simulated drowning technique known as waterboarding, former officials said. He identified them many months later under standard interrogation, they said, leaving it once again up for debate as to whether the harsh technique was a valuable tool or an unnecessarily violent tactic.'"

I've seen some clips of GOPers giving credit to Bush, including one of Sarah Palin who could thank George Bush by name but not Obama. I'm very curious to see articles with some details about how we tracked him down. Until then I'll hold off judgement, but I can't help but remember how Bush said he didn't worry about bin Laden much and how Obama said he made finding him the number one priority for intelligence agencies. I think Barney Frank makes some good points on this.

I find all the comments about how he was so close to the Pakistani equivalent of West Point, how could they not have known? It strikes me as kind of ridiculous. Do they expect cadets to monitor everyone's homes in a 10 mile radius? Apparently US forces were there too, US troops were yards from Osama bin Laden house in 2008. "The US soldiers were due to perform a routine posting "training the trainers" of Pakistan's 70,000-strong federal military unit, the Frontier Corps."