Thoughts on Osama's Death

It was stunning last night to hear the news of Osama Bin Laden's death. Frankly, it had been so long that I assumed he would never be captured, in part because it was very possible that he was already dead. My first thought was "Wow, I'd really hate to be Pakistan right about now" because now there is proof that the government wasn't doing near enough to make terrorists within its borders feel uncomfortable. India is in the driver's seat as far as relations between the two countries go with Pakistan now having zero credibility. This could be a very bad situation, one that India might conceivably use to justify a nuclear attack if any further terrorist actions originating in Pakistan were forthcoming.


Today I am torn about how I feel. The pacifist part of me feels that it is never appropriate to celebrate someone's death no matter how evil they are (and certainly I am not celebrating Osama's death, but I don't really feel sad about it, either), but in reading more about the operation to find/attack Osama, and especially reading about how the crowd spontaneously started chanting "U-S-A! U-S-A!" at the Mets game last night, I find myself getting choked up and feeling a little "America! Fuck Yeah!" action going on. It is an unexpected split.

Thoughts on Song of Solomon

I read Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon this past week for a class, and have come out of it feeling very depressed. The book is excellent in both its craft and its page-turning nature. What depressed me about it is that left me thinking there is no full solution to the problem of racial strife. The only character in the book that tries to fight against racism rather than trying to assimilate to the point of becoming white (Macon) or simply ignoring the issue (Pilate, Milkman) is Guitar, but he uses violent means to do so by attempting to avenge the killing of blacks with the killing of whites. This of course is not a helpful response to racism. But it raises the question, what is? In the fifty or so years since the modern Civil Rights movement began, legislation has improved the situation somewhat, but has still come nowhere near close to fixing the problem. Maybe it will take a full 300 years to completely heal the wounds of 300 years of slavery.

Books Acquired Recently

Today begins a new periodic feature in which I list for your viewing pleasure books that I have recently acquired. This is mostly so I can show off my love for book acquisition, but also because I don't feel like writing about anything else right now. Also, please note that this practice is shamelessly stolen from Nick Hornby's Believer column.

Books Acquired Recently (and where from)

Contemporary Fiction: 50 Short Stories Since 1970. Ed. Lex Williford and Michael Martone. Borders. (Quite good so far; I may actually assign it to one of my classes.)

The Naked and the Dead. Norman Mailer. Borders.

In Cold Blood. Truman Capote. Borders.

Incidentally, two topics I considered writing about were:

1. the writer Janet Kauffman (because she has a story in the above-mentioned anthology, "Patriotic"), who is one of my favorites, but more for her beautifully-crafted work than its thought-provoking-ness;

2. Christopher Hitchens' recent Slate column about why the British military should not have withdrawn Prince Harry from Afghanistan (http://www.slate.com/id/2186186?GT1=3800). Hitchens is either brilliant or a complete idiot, depending on what he's writing about. When he writes about politics, he's usually an idiot (e.g., he loves the Iraq war), but in this column he is spot on.

The Times Square bombing

I was shocked when I heard on NPR this morning that the military recruiting station in Times Square was bombed last night, I thought I must have heard wrong or was still dreaming. I'm still flabbergasted - I can't believe someone rose above the apathy and decided to make that kind of '60s-esque political statement. I do not condone the violence of it, but at the same time it makes me wonder if real change could be on the horizon, if Americans will start caring enough again that this country has gotten ridiculously far away from its idealistic roots to begin to take (preferably nonviolent) action. Maybe if Obama is elected we will begin to head in the right direction.

Nader again

I just read that Ralph Nader is again running for president. This makes me sad. Nader is needlessly tarnishing his important legacy as a consumer advocate. He has no chance of playing a significant role in the race, and as a result is simply reinforcing his current image as a grumpy old man.