I’ve never been to Pakistan. I’ve never fired a gun. I’ve never walked into a room knowing people would die and praying that it wouldn’t be me. Yet, there are many men and women in this country who have done all of those things to defend America’s freedom.
It is both curious and fitting that, the week of Veteran’s Day, there has been a clamour to uncover the identity of the Navy Seal who was responsible for killing Osama Bin Laden. Even now, over 3 years later, the American public is fascinated by the idea that one individual is responsible for neutralizing the greatest terror threat in the 21st century.
There are some who believe knowing the identity of Bin Laden’s killer would be significant, meaningful in some way. They believe that this person should be commended, receive some extra attention for taking out one of the world’s most dangerous characters. This man would never have to buy himself another beer for the rest of his life. The American people would make sure of that.
There are still others who believe that announcing the identity of the trigger puller would put that person’s life in danger. Drawing a giant circle around a single member of the military would make him a prime target for Al-Qaeda to attempt retribution.
While I don’t necessarily believe the Seal’s life would be put at risk by uncovering his identity, I think there is a bigger moral issue associated with acknowledging the role of any individual who participated in the raid.
First of all, the Americans that went into Bin Laden’s camp in May of 2011 consisted of an entire team of men and women, putting their lives in danger for their country. The person who fired the first bullet wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of the guy who held the door open. There is no need to call out individuals for their actions when the whole group had their own roles, and no piece would have worked if it wasn’t for another cog in the machine.
On a different level, maybe an even more important level, we see the gravity of this moment in the historical context of America. The man responsible for the largest terror attack on US soil was killed, not by an individual, but by the American public. I would love to believe that a bald eagle, wings painted in star-spangled Red, White, and Blue, swooped into the room and stole the life right out of the man. This may sound a little theatrical, but that kind of image is exactly what the American public needs. This was not a man being killed by another. It was a man being killed by an entire nation, revenge for the countless lives that he stole.
The best byproduct we could hope for is that we, as the American public, give more attention to any and all members of the US Armed Forces. We should be buying a beer for anyone willing to sacrifice their lives for our freedom. We should be looking out for the financial and emotional security of all who make sacrifices to ensure we can continue to live out the American dream. We should be saying that, no matter what you did, you did it for us, and we’re so grateful that you did.
Rob O’Neill, the Navy Seal coming forward as the man who shot and killed Osama Bin Laden, said recently that he sometimes can’t decide whether this act of heroism was the best or worst thing he has ever done. The ability to end a man’s life, serving as judge and jury for the most hated man in America, is a burden no individual should have to bear. He will live with that for the rest of his life. Now, though, we as a country, can help to support that load, because he was acting on behalf of the entire nation.
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