Obama 10:50 PM Announcement: bin Laden dead - Embassy Attack False Alarm

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

The one thing I gather from this is the U.S. didn't trust Pakistan one bit.

I guess what I was getting at was that, even as low as my expectations are for the current administration, I'd be surprised if there was anyone in the highest levels of decision making that trusted Pakistan as far as they could throw it. That's just something so obvious that I almost take it for granted I guess.

As for the allies, the risk of even the slightest slip was too great. Obama most certainly considered Carter's catastrophic clusterfuck in Iran when making that (relatively easy) decision.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

I never listen to the local talk radio station. But, flipped it on this morning to hear the one local guy, before Glenn Beck is on.

His assistant is subscribing to the theory that Obama had the information at 4:30 yesterday afternoon, but held the information until last night because he wanted to pre-empt Trump and the Celebrity Apprentice ending.

People scare me.

Typical east coast bias. He probably just didn't want people in LA to know to eat at Soul Daddy tomorrow.

[Ronnie Dobbs2]

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blog...bin-laden.html

The maps I looked at had sections of land nearby marked off as “restricted area,” indicating that it was under military control. It stretches credulity to think that a mansion of that scale could have been built and occupied by bin Laden for six years without it coming to the attention of anyone in Pakistan’s Army.

The initial circumstantial evidence suggests the opposite is more likely—that bin Laden was effectively being housed under Pakistani state control. Pakistan will deny this, it seems safe to predict, and perhaps no convincing evidence will ever surface to prove the case.

[Mike Lowe]

I remember hearing earlier on CNN that one of the raided rooms was basically packed with computers. I guess all of the hard drives had been removed during/before the raid.

It would have been very interesting to see what was on those as it doesn't take a genius to realize that obviously more attacks are in the works. Especially now unfortunately.

I'm flying into DC in June...yikes!

[JediKooter]

Now, thankfully, we won't have to hear anymore about that damn wedding.

[Rizon]

I thought we killed him a week ago and it took this long to ID his DNA?
Now I read we killed him yesterday morning, he's been ID'd and tossed in the ocean. Huh?

[Ronnie Dobbs2]

I think the early reports were erroneous.

[Rizon]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs2

I think the early reports were erroneous.

That's what I was guessing.

I turned it on FoxNews last night (just to pick a channel) and some guy was on there saying the war on terror was over now. Huh ...
So I figured Gary Gnu was reporting the news.

Anyways, what is the point of burying him at sea?

[JAG]

Originally Posted by Rizon

Anyways, what is the point of burying him at sea?

Two reasons I've heard. One, they didnt want his grave to become a shrine as Saddam's grave has (no idea what that means as I know nothing of his grave). Two, there was a suspicion that no country would want his body. Presumably it was offered to Saudi Arabia as his country of birth and they turned it down.

[JediKooter]

All the wrong reports is what we get when all these news organizations are trying to beat each other so they can say: "We brought it to you first...it was completely wrong, but, we were first!!".

[GoldenEagle]

Originally Posted by Rizon

That's what I was guessing.

I turned it on FoxNews last night (just to pick a channel) and some guy was on there saying the war on terror was over now. Huh ...
So I figured Gary Gnu was reporting the news.

Anyways, what is the point of burying him at sea?

If he was tossed (which I have my doubts), it is because Muslim culture dictates a burial within 24 hours after death. His body was offered to Saudi Arabia and they declined it.

That or the whole transformers thing...

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Rizon

Anyways, what is the point of burying him at sea?

So we don't have to put security on the body to keep the nutjobs from constantly trying to grab it?

[JediKooter]

What worse? Zombie Osama or Transformer Osama?

[Rizon]

Couldn't they have burned him like they did Darth Vader?

[GoldenEagle]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

All the wrong reports is what we get when all these news organizations are trying to beat each other so they can say: "We brought it to you first...it was completely wrong, but, we were first!!".

Sounds like software development.

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by GoldenEagle

Sounds like software development.

Very true.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Rizon

Couldn't they have burned him like they did Darth Vader?

Dude, spoiler tags!

[cuervo72]

Well at least they didn't launch him into space in a giant suppository at the risk of being reanimated later.

[Ksyrup]

[GoldenEagle]

[lighthousekeeper]

that gif is so awesome.

[Thomkal]

so what are people's thoughts on whether or not to show the photos of Bin Laden's body? The President is debating releasing them, and in this age of birther and other conspiracy theories, maybe its a good idea to show it? So we don't have to listen to people calling for it ten months from now?

[MJ4H]

Release em

[Butter]

Release them. Or better yet, save them for a few months until some idiot tries to gain legitimacy by claiming that he's not really dead... THEN release them.

[Rizon]

...

[stevew]

I don't see why the government has to justify itself to conspiracy morons who won't believe it anyways. For example "I.E. The directional angle of the bullet wound suggests that he was shot by a 10'4" soldier" type shit will develp anyways.

[Passacaglia]

You'll never satisfy everyone, so I'm not sure I see the point in bothering. You've got people who think he died in 2001 and people who don't believe he's dead now -- some people will believe what they want to believe.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

Release them. Or better yet, save them for a few months until some idiot tries to gain legitimacy by claiming that he's not really dead... THEN release them.

Then have people scrutinize them and say they're fake because its obvious that Bin Laden would never use Helvetica on his faked Pakistan drivers license.

[Peregrine]

Did you guys see this video of a huge crowd of cadets at the US Naval Academy outside the Commandant's home? Warning - pretty loud.

[whomario]

Originally Posted by stevew

I don't see why the government has to justify itself to conspiracy morons who won't believe it anyways. For example "I.E. The directional angle of the bullet wound suggests that he was shot by a 10'4" soldier" type shit will develp anyways.

as far as i´m concerned any government has to justify itself and it´s actions as much as possible. Just because not everybody gets convinced and/or cares about proove doesn´t mean you don´t have to try to deliver it. That´s a very dangerous line or argumentation imo.

There are propably valid reasons not to release the pictures or other means of proof, but "it´s not worth our while cause not everybody believes it" sure as heck can´t be on it.

[albionmoonlight]

Rush Limbaugh praises the President:

Rush Limbaugh Osama bin Laden | Rush Limbaugh Barack Obama | Mediaite

And not fake praise either. Full-on real praise.

[molson]

If I remember right from the Saddam videos that were released, there was some sensitivity to Islamic culture about the importance of visual evidence. Not so much as "proof", but just as part of the normal traditional process - you don't hide bodies, you show them. If photos are released, I think this would be the motivation, as opposed to to a need to prove anything.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Thomkal

So we don't have to listen to people calling for it ten months from now?

*points and laughs*

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

Did you guys see this video of a huge crowd of cadets at the US Naval Academy outside the Commandant's home? Warning - pretty loud.

It was pretty nuts over there last night.

[M GO BLUE!!!]

I drank the Blue Label from the bottle last night.

[Rizon]

The mansion he was hiding in.

[Lathum]

They have grass in Pakistan?

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by Rizon

...

HAHA!

[Rizon]

Originally Posted by Lathum

They have grass in Pakistan?

Don't be dumb dude, that's obviously astroturf.

[M GO BLUE!!!]

Originally Posted by Lathum

They have grass in Pakistan?

Yeah, but it's probably not as good as what you can get in Jamaica.

[Thomkal]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

*points and laughs*

ummm, what did I miss here?

[tucking fypo]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

Now, thankfully, we won't have to hear anymore about that damn wedding.

I was telling my students the same thing this morning and they all agreed, except the prissy girls who like the pretzel hats the women were wearing.

This press briefing on the sequence of events leading up to the killing and burial has been endlessly fascinating.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

Rush Limbaugh praises the President:

Rush Limbaugh Osama bin Laden | Rush Limbaugh Barack Obama | Mediaite

And not fake praise either. Full-on real praise.

That was actually pretty nice. I wish more of the wingnuts would follow his example on this one.

[JPhillips]

Am I the only one who thinks Limbaugh's comments are satire? The "only qualified person in the room" just doesn't seem genuine to me.

[molson]

I was listening to Rush Limbaugh in the car last week (I cancelled Sirius, I was in rural Idaho, it was the only the station forever, I'm still working on my post-Sirius car listening habits), and he was mocking birthers as nutjobs. I got the sense either that he's getting soft in his old age, or the show maybe isn't as extreme as the "symbol" of Rush.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Rizon

Never seen him mentioned as "Usama" before. Talked to a few people and they've never seen him mentioned that way before, only "Osama". What's up with that?

We could always ask him. Oh wait...

[molson]

I definitely agree with this sentiment from the WSJ legal blog:

http://abovethelaw.com/2011/05/no-tr...all-americans/

"Thank God he was killed, not “captured.” If he had been captured, there would have been some kind of trial. Some kind of fake, orchestrated, television show of a trial. Lawyers, judges, and others would have danced around trying to give Osama bin Laden the appearance of a fair hearing before his inevitable execution. It would have been a farce — a farce that our military and/or civilian courts are not equipped to handle.

Better for Bin Laden to meet his end as he did: via a double tap from a Navy Seal…."

[molson]

A couple of tidbits I haven't seen here yet from CNN.

-Osama was killed in the last 10 minutes of the 40 minute operation.
-The female human shield that was killed was shielding Osama specificially
-Osama was using a weapon when he was killed

[M GO BLUE!!!]

Originally Posted by molson

-The female human shield that was killed was shielding Osama specificially
-Osama was using a weapon when he was killed

As we have seen in the Chief Rum dating thread (and in our own sad lives,) a woman actually can be a weapon.

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by tucking fypo

I was telling my students the same thing this morning and they all agreed, except the prissy girls who like the pretzel hats the women were wearing.

This press briefing on the sequence of events leading up to the killing and burial has been endlessly fascinating.

I'd threaten them with all F's for the rest of the semester if they continue on about anything to do with the wedding. That's just me though.

I haven't had a chance to see this yet. I'm still waiting for that Chinese site to do the animated video of the operation.