I still do not get why killing Bin Laden was such a "huge achievement" for the president. One, it showed that, like Bush, Obama is willing to violate international boundaries to "get someone." This flies in the face of everything Obama ran on in 2008. Second, nothing was achieved by Bin Laden dying except some drunk frat boys and college chicks ran around with "USA" painted on their chests. Did the war in Afgahanistam end? No, Obama is actually talking about pushing back the withdrawal date. Did terrorism end all of a sudden? No, Frau Nepolitano is still telling Congress how we need to be afraid of terrorists. Third, killing Bin Laden did absolutely nothing in terms of improving relations with the Middle East and actually pissed off Pakistan, who Obama himself has noted is an important ally for any interventions in Afghanistan.
In the end, killing Bin Laden was about as useful as the Doolittle Raids or the burning of Chambersburg. These actions were simply vendettas which gained absolutely nothing for the U.S. (or the CSA in terms of Chambersburg) and were a waste of money. Is a soldier in Afghanistan any less likely to be killed because Bin Laden is dead? The answer is no and the increasing body count in Afghanistan proves this.
The fact that Obama and the Democrats are parading the death of Bin Laden as some huge event simply shows that they are NO different from the Republicans. They are running a victory lap because they "got" the over-simplified Disney villain rather than the Republicans. The GOP did this in 2004 with Saddam Hussein. This is stupid dick waving that has absolutely nothing to do with a coherent and successful foreign policy. The fact that Obama parades the death of a rather useless old man (except in terms of propaganda for the U.S. media and the Pentagon) as some huge achievement in his presidency should be telling to the failure that his administration is. It also is telling to how stupid most Americans are, even those who claim to be informed are fooled by this silly tactic.
Don't agree that his administration is a failure, far from it, but I have to admit that I agree with your assessment of the Bin Laden killing. It was significant as a symbolic victory and gave many Americans, especially those affected by 9/11, a degree of closure. Still, It didn't "end" terrorism or Al Qaeda, and anyone who thought his death would herald America's "victory" in the war on terror is delusional.
