Should the U.S. formally release the Bin Laden death photo(s)

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

discuss

[Franzl]

Certainly. They'll be leaked somehow anyway...might as well just do it and be done with it.

[Grumpier Than Thou]

He's been dead since 2007.

[Cincinnatus]

If the National Security team recommended the President withhold them for now, then I'm somewhat comfortable with the decision.  I won't criticize the President for taking their advice.  I do agree that they will be released or leaked eventually.

[angus]

Who cares, he was dead long ago.

discuss

I don't know.  My first reaction was that they should not.  I mean, there's nothing I enjoy more with my morning coffee and bran muffin than seeing images of a old guy with a big bloody hole in the side of his head, but it just didn't seem wise.  Then I thought about it some more, and I read some of jmfcst posts and watched Ann Coulter on FNC, and I became convinced that they should show the pictures.  Then, I watched a PBS interview with some dude from Princeton who convinced me that they shouldn't.

Hell, I don't know...

I can see advantages and disadvantages to releasing them, and advantages and disadvantages to not releasing them.  As I'm sure you can.

I will say that as much as I like Obama--and don't necesarily regret voting for him, and think he's justifiably riding high after the successful execution attempt on bin Laden, and I can think of about a million good reasons not to release the photos and about a million good reasons to release the photos--I still think that the official reason for not releasing them were about as stupid as any I can think of.  “We don’t need to spike the football.”  Are you serious?!  For a guy who was eloquent enough to win over the unaffiliated and a number of centrist Republicans--He won Indiana, for crying out loud!--he sure has had a hacking sense of speech since he got elected. 

Anyway, I'm voting for the dead guy walking option.

[anvi]

I don't think we should formally release them.  It might make some of us feel good, but, since this is an event of international significance, I think it would be unnecessarily provocative.

Having said that, I will only add that I do find all the hand-ringing about killing bin Laden ridiculous.  Considering what he did to both non-Muslim and Muslim civilians both in the U.S. and around the world, the only unfortunate thing about the manner of his death is that he got off way too easy.

[Torie]

No. It has no real upside (the skeptics will just say it was phony anyway, and with computers one can generate anything), and it may precipitate more chatter about the assassination of an unarmed man (allegedly), and since the pics apparently have the guy's face blown away, it may generate more anger from those on the edge of becoming murderers, but not quite there yet. No!

[specific_name]

No, the skeptics will deny it anyway. Some were denying the deaths of Saddam's sons despite graphic evidence to the contrary. Why do we have two conspiracy type options in the poll? So many people would have to be in on a coverup, keeping the body on ice or whatever these fools think.

Releasing the photos would be like showing trophy pictures, not really conducive to letting Bin Laden's death just roll over... most the Muslim world doesn't care too much either way about him. No reason to give him anymore press. He's dead, there's no grave to visit and no death pictures for people to rally around. That's how it should be done.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Absolutely not.  That is not who we are.  We don't parade photos around of our kills.  Barbarians do that.  Bin Laden would have most certainly paraded photos around of his American kills if given the chance, and we're trying to prove we're above that.  Plus, we don't want to reignite Al-Qaeda who, while their leader is deceased, is very capable of rising up again with Zawahiri now the leader and causing more trouble.  We also don't want any potential shrine development.  A picture could have been placed at the compound and a shrine started there, just the same as if they had his body.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

No... the crazies will remain crazy and deny it.  The military advised against it, and that's good enough for me.  It'll get leaked eventually anyway, and that will provide closure for the families while still not placing as much of a target on the military.

[cinyc]

Yes.  They should release photos or video of Bin Laden's body being prepared for his supposedly proper Muslim burial in order to satisfy both those who want proof that he is dead and Muslims who don't think his burial was properly handled.  That is, of course, if such photos or video even exists.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Al Quaeda confirmed his death on a web site they routinely use.  Isn't that good enough?  It is for me.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Al Quaeda confirmed his death on a web site they routinely use.  Isn't that good enough?  It is for me.

to me, this was never about confirming his death, I accepted the admin's word for it (because the risk of lying about it far exceeded any political gain – if Osama ever raised his head again, Obama would be finished).

Rather, it was about not releasing it for all the wrong reasons.  we're worried about either:
1) making "angry" a group that was willing to fly themselves into skyscrapers full of civilians (like, this pic is going to make them even crazier than being willing to expend their lives to kill civilians?!)
2) making “angry” the muslim street. (if the muslim street still identifies with Osama, then being PC isn’t going to do anything other than to kid ourselves)

If our leaders would state these clear facts and recognize it is a war, instead of acting like our enemies are simply children on the verge of tears that we have to coddle, then maybe we would have a chance to win.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

You have to take the administration's word for it......I mean c'mon, it's not like it's something they could institute a worldwide cover-up about.

And now that the terrorists have spoken about, what's the point, if there ever was a point to releasing the photos?

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

You have to take the administration's word for it......I mean c'mon, it's not like it's something they could institute a worldwide cover-up about.

And now that the terrorists have spoken about, what's the point, if there ever was a point to releasing the photos?

i just explained why, because they're not releasing for all the wrong reasons (see post above)

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

You have to take the administration's word for it......I mean c'mon, it's not like it's something they could institute a worldwide cover-up about.

And now that the terrorists have spoken about, what's the point, if there ever was a point to releasing the photos?

i just explained why, because they're not releasing for all the wrong reasons (see post above)

There's only 1 reason - a lack of need to do so.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

You have to take the administration's word for it......I mean c'mon, it's not like it's something they could institute a worldwide cover-up about.

And now that the terrorists have spoken about, what's the point, if there ever was a point to releasing the photos?

i just explained why, because they're not releasing for all the wrong reasons (see post above)

There's only 1 reason - a lack of need to do so.

  actually, I would think you would have to come up with a reason NOT to, instead of citing no reason to do so.  after all, we are suppose to be an open society unless there is a reason NOT to be an open society

[stegosaurus]

To do so would just give al Queda another propaganda tool.  To release them would do nothing but appease those who have the same fanatical fascination with war that they do with sports.

[King]

No point to it really.  Anybody with questions about the Osama death who sees it will just continue to herp derp their conspiracies.

[Sbane]

No, but they should informally leak it in a few months and then feign outrage.

[Marokai Backbeat]

I honestly wouldn't mind either way, but I don't think there's any benefit to releasing it. As others said, people will just claim they're doctored photos. As much as I hate the phrase, the haters really are just going to hate, regardless of what Obama does. If people are that determined to be contrary, there's no point in releasing potentially inflammatory photos.

[Cincinnatus]

No, but they should informally leak it in a few months and then feign outrage.

If a leak like that gets out, doesn't it just reflect poorly on the administration and make someone look incompetent?  I guess if they think the benefit outweighs the risk then it could be a plan.

[The Mikado]

Release them in a few years, for the history books.  They aren't needed now.

[dead0man]

I agree with most of us here.  There is no good reason to release them and several good reasons not to.  The "deathers" won't be convinced.

On the other hand, anybody that would get violent over the photos is somebody that's going to get violent eventually anyway.  We certainly shouldn't NOT release them just to pacify people like that.

[Frodo]

Considering that Al Qaeda itself has acknowledged his death, it would be a bit redundant to release the photos now or anytime in the near future -so no.