Some quick thoughts on what's being discussed and debated now that Bin Laden is dead:

* People are discussing "was he armed?" "Did they have to kill him?" "was his wife (?) used as a shield? - why are we bothering? The SEAL team already stated that the wife lunged toward them, and she was in front--yet they managed to shoot her in the leg. Bin Laden, who they admit was in the back, got a bullet to the head, and one to the chest.  "Did they have to kill him?"   Folks, if they can shoot a small, charging woman in the leg, then they surely could have just wounded a tall, stationary Bin Ladin. But that was the goal from jump. Doesn't matter if he was armed or threatening--he was dead man walking

* Does Bush deserve credit? Obama graciously--and politically masterfully--thanked Bush for the groundwork he laid in getting to this point. But all those who say Bush deserves a lot of credit need to get a clue. The same Bush who went into Iraq to stop Al Qaeda? The same Bush who wasted billions of dollars in destabilizing that country, to no avail? The same Bush who abridged our freedoms with the "Patriot" Act and other intrusions? The same Bush who couldn't accomplish in seven years what Obama did in three? The same Bush who said not too long ago, on tape, that he "Didn't know where Obama is, and don't really care. I'm not worried about him"? That Bush?

* Roaches always crawl back from hiding. I'd hoped that the unholy cabal of Cheney, Rove, Wofowitz, Rumsfeld, and others had slinked off to the shadows. I'd hoped that, like Rumsfeld, some had the decency to feel, if not "wrong", then at least "misunderstood', and would simply go way, unwanted. Cheney was around, mumbling and grumbling about Obama, but no one paid him any heed. Rove is on the sidelines trying to manipulate, but the new crazed Tea Partyers ignore him. So I thought, maybe these hated people, like roaches, had been driven away. But noooo.   Now that Obama did what they couldn't they are all back. I'm amazed at how Rumsfeld--who just a few weeks ago at least looked pensive--is now beating his chest on all the talk shows. How he's saying that Obama used the network he built to succeed. How he's saying that had Obama not used the info they gave him from Patriot Act and Gitmo torturing and other stuff, this would never happen. How he's glad Obama finally decided that he "wanted to start protecting America". Similarly, the others from those bad old days are scurrying back out of the shadows, only too glad now to argue that all their wrongheaded moves, their crushing of human rights, their singleminded clumsiness, is actually responsible for Obama's success. Where's the can of Raid when you need it?

* It's kinda sad when a man is judged as brave and decisive when he kills someone. I'm not bemoaning Bin Laden's death. He was evil by any measure, by any spiritual/political/religious/cultural measure I know. And yeah, I'm impressed with Obama's cool, his resolve, the intelligence network he (not Bush!) has built and used effectively. But I"m also impressed at the strength of character he showed fighting for healthcare reform (yeah I know: some of you say he punked out). I'm impressed by how he can give a speech where people yell "You lie!" and not cuss them out. How he can listen to all the racist accusations, the birther nonsense, and keep his cool. How he can work with people who despise him, for the good of the country. In a dozen ways small and large, I'm impressed with the strength and resolve he's had to show just to do the job. And so, while this strike is definitely impressive, definitely meaningful, and definitely beneficial to him, I don't want the measure of strength of the man to be that he can order a kill shot.

*Can we drop the term  "War on terrorism" I was impressed in Obama's good, short speech Sunday, to hear him say "The war on Al Qaeda", *not*  "the war on terrorism". His administration long ago said they wanted to drop the latter term, as it is an undefined, unlimited term that can be used as carte blanche to engage in battles around the world indefinitely, and an excuse to limit American civil liberties under the guise of a never-ending "war".  But sadly, I still hear a lot of people, conservatives especially, but even some journalists who should know better, still talk about what's next in "the war on terror"

* how quickly they forget - mark my words. When and if some retaliation from extremists leads to loss of American life, the right wingers will be right back at calling Obama incompetent to fight hat "war on terrorism". It'll fuel them even more to say the Bin Laden thing wasn't so much him as it was the foundation Bush built. Let one American get killed, or one nut with TNT in his underwear or whatever get past a bored TSA agent, and they'll be screaming again how Obama doesn't want to protect Americans.