Terror Shot in the Face

Yes, it is the headline that took the world by storm: Osama bin Laden DEAD. Headline of the week. Perhaps even a headline that will grant Obama another 4 years in Office.

It has indeed been an emotional journey over the past decade for the USA and many of its allies who chose to wage a war against terrorism. And no one blames the US for wanting to wage a war against terrorism. Terrorism, in this case, is any act of defiance that stands in the US's way when it wants to shove democracy down someone's throat.

Osama bin Laden, son of a wealthy Saudi businessman, was a prominent figure among Jihadists who redefined Islam in the modern world, at which point Islam became synonymous with terrorism. Unjustly so, as tying any sort of radicalism to any one religion or one nation doesn't only cause an epidemic-like spread of stereotypes, but also labels millions of people as damaged goods. Bin Laden, or the shadow thereof in the past decade, was nothing but a wealthy radical who took it upon himself to shove his ideologies and beliefs down the world's throat, very much like the US. While both parties are polar opposites of each other, they stand for the same thing; they made it their ultimate goal to shove their ideologies down the world’s throat. And even with so much in common they have become sworn enemies, both wreaking havoc and causing as much damage as the World Wars did, and the world certainly wouldn't expect less of them. It was very much like a festival, with a main stage and other secondary stages; the US vs. Bin Laden vs. Afghanistan vs. Iraq on the main stage, then you have every other disaster and revolution taking place in different stages simultaneously. This is world-class entertainment.

When the US elite Navy SEALs killed Bin Laden, along with a number of his family members, the US did not just kill its nemesis, the reason behind it re-strategizing its entire foreign policy and security schemes, but it very much killed what Bin Laden stood for; “terrorism”. Bin Laden, for the past decade, has been in hiding, and has become nothing more than an ethereal figure which any act of violence undertaken by both parties cast the blame upon. By killing Bin Laden the US merely showed the world that it will find you even if it took a while, that it will kill you when it finds you and will refuse to bury your shot face so you won't have a shrine for your followers to visit. When two rivals do come to blows, the world does not expect less than a show of power as such. In this case, that is one point for the US/Obama, and none for Al Qaeda. The US earned it fair and square.

An act of aggression as such was certainly a blow on Al Qaeda, which can and will retaliate. The US is sure to be ready for that, because one cannot expect to kill Bin Laden and not face a storm of consequences. However, this event, or what it stands for, has created a perfect breeding ground for all sorts of conspiracy theories. Since it has been announced, photos of Bin Laden's carcass have been on high demand to enable the world to see the shot, inanimate Face of All Evil. When normally they would label this as graphic, now they want to see the bloodied face of Bin Laden to sleep better at night, knowing that the world is now a safer place.

Drowned in hypocrisy and double-standardism, this world does not yet know what it is up against. That ethereal figure might be gone now, but another figure shall soon materialize because the US and the world need someone to blame for radicalism, terrorism and all things foul.