Bye bye bogeyman, and thanks for all the fear

Today an impromptu celebration has swept the country, as a ten year hunt for the apparent mastermind of 9/11 has come to a close.  As I write this, my facebook feed is continuously refilling with a variety of congratulatory messages, and the news media is in a frenzy of reporting and speculation.

Celebrations are certainly in order, but only to a point.  One fact that cannot be forgotten in the general jubilation is that, in a broad sense, Bin Laden won, and will continue to win even after his death.  Look at our airports, where citizens are routinely groped and digitally stripped in the name of security.  Look at our economy, which is straining under the weight of two unending wars.  Look to the top of our political structure, where the executive has accumulated enough power to make our founders seethe in their graves.  Look to our internal security culture, which works to monitor its citizens’ activity without warrant, and who now, under executive order, can assassinate American citizens.

Bin Laden’s death is a long-overdue boon, and we are justified in our celebration.  We must, however, recognize that the war to save America’s identity now needs to begin: we need to put fear behind and begin to remember our values of freedom, respect, and pride.