How do you explain it?

I have friends from all over the world thanks to the internet. Over the years it's been interesting listening to how other countries percieve us here in the good old USA. I remember, when I first went to Sweden, I was surprised to hear that over all they saw the US as an overly religiously preoccupied country. I didn't see it. Certainly, I am not overly religious. In fact, I am not religious at all. And though I have friends and family that are religious, I've never felt it was overt. Yet, I can see how that perception started when I watch the media, our politicians, and see how religion does infiltrate areas of our lives whether we subscribe or not. In god we trust...vodee oh do do!

Last night, when it was announced that Navy Seals had killed Osama bin Laden I have to admit I was amazed and thrilled. I clearly remember the fear and unrest we all felt on September 11. 2001. It was an act of terrorism that shook us to our core. I remember wanting to be home among my loved ones and stay close to what I knew to be good and true because it felt like all the goodness and truth in the world blew up when those planes hit the World Trade Center. So hearing bin Laden was dead was some sort of closure. Then today, on facebook, I read some of the statuses of my friends from over seas. They didn't share my relief. In fact, they felt very much that this was just one more dead man, more blood on the hands of America. I get where that comes from, I really do. I mean, I am not convinced that our troops in Iraq has ever been a good thing or necessary. I question our foreign policy in so many ways and think that we have always been quick to act in a military stance when it was that we had something to gain. But to read the words of my friends who were equating bin Laden with just so much US propogana...well, to tell you the truth, that hurt a little. I don't expect them to celebrate. I'm not really celebrating this myself. It seems wrong to celebrate someone's death even if he was a terrorist monster. But some understanding would have been nice.

I haven't said anything to these friends yet. Mostly because I just don't know what to say. I certainly don't want to get into some kind of patriotic pissing match with them. That's just not my style. I guess I get tired of always being seen as the "greedy American", the "ugly American", the "War mongering American", the "useless American". It's easy to point the finger at the bad stuff and negate all of the good the US does all over the world. At the very least, on a personal friendly level, give me a break. And let me have this moment of relief.