Waving bin Laden's "Bloody Shirt"

If you watched any of the recent Democrat convention in Charlotte recently, you probably noted the prominent waving of Osama bin Laden's "bloody shirt". A number of speakers, including the president himself, paraded it out as a major accomplishment of his administration. This is not terribly surprising, since there are so few of them to brag about! We noted that here, last May.

Obama also brought it up himself in his speech to the U.N. last year. In a fashion which invokes my maxim that liberals are irony impaired, Obama said famously:

Osama bin Laden is gone, and the idea that change could only come through violence has been buried with him.

You get that? We did away with the idea that "change could only come through violence" by shooting him in the face! I'll give you a second to chew over that little gem!

Do you remember the rationale of this administration in not releasing the death photos of bin Laden? That releasing the photos could trigger "violence, attacks, or acts of revenge" against the U. S. That was reportedly also the reason that Obama said he would not "spike the ball" over OBL's death. Even though, he has repeatedly broken that pledge. He mentioned OBL twice in his 2012 SOTU address.

Which do you think would have a wider influence on the world in general? A You Tube video of the trailer, of a low budget, obscure movie that almost no one has ever seen or heard about, or the President of the United States and his surrogates, repeatedly and gleefully boasting about the death of Osama bin Laden?

Since the Obama administration itself acknowledged that the death of bin Laden could be inflammatory and cause violence retaliation, would it not be fair to state that more than just photographs could cause that "inflammation"? Has this administration forgotten that there can be power in words as well?

For example, if I told you that someone had broken into your house, killed your parents and raped your sister, would you say to me, "That's all very interesting, but I have to wait to see some photos before I can muster any outrage."? I don't think so.

But, yet, for the sake of some supposed political advantage, Obama continues to poke Islamic extremists in the eye over the death of bin Laden, because of the barrenness of his own accomplishments over the last four years.

I know it is just speculation on my part, but I would venture that Obama's continually spiking the ball over bin Laden's death and his years long victory celebration in the endzone did more to foment the unrest at our embassies than any You Tube video, or at the very least, contributed to it. Add to this, the Egyptian rioters chanting "Obama, Obama: We are all Osama!", and it appears that waving the bloody shirt may have indeed had more influence than any You Tube video. The video may have provided an additional spark, but the powderkeg was long primed.

When the President of the United States speaks, as the leader of the last remaining superpower, his words are repeated and analyzed on television, radio, newspapers, the Internet and by word of mouth, as opposed to a single video, lost in the clutter of You Tube. His influence is greater, his audience more far reaching.

At best, Obama bragging about bin Laden has become a national joke, starting with SNL and reaching across the Internet, where anything Obama says can be appended with, "Oh, and by the way, did I tell you I got bin Laden?", and it is still plausible enough to elicit a sad smile. As in a recent event where the families of fallen soldiers being returned to the US, had asked that there be no cameras at the event, so President Obama brought his own photographer.


There was something unseemly about seeing John "Magic Hat" Kerry at the convention, who bolted as soon as he could from the field of conflict in Viet Nam, with three dubious Purple Hearts, who then went on to publicly denigrate America's armed forces, trying to bask in the glory of America's genuine heroes. Likewise with a Commander-in-Chief grossly unfamiliar with both military history and tradition. It is even worse when they acknowledge that America's fighting forces could be put at risk with provocations over bin Laden's death, and yet, they repeatedly bring it up, "spiking the ball" for political gain.

Maybe our next president will recognize that we still live in a dangerous world, and take the job seriously enough to at least attend the daily national security briefings?

Cross posted at LCR.