I am deeply saddened by the celebratory language surrounding the assassination of al-Awalaki. It is a grim business not worthy of celebration. No doubt there are dozens of arguments justifying it. Perhaps, at some level, it was necessary. At least some people thought so. But this is not a video game. There are no points earned for taking out a bad guy, no higher level to achieve for skillfully handling the robot controls of a drone and its missile. This is the reality of politics by assassination.
I regret that America has joined the ranks of those who seek blood for blood through assassination. I fail to see how that leads us closer to whatever security is either at home or abroad. Vendetta is not justice, and, it seems to me, does little more than engage us in the endless cycle of blood feuding that can go on for generations reaching ever deeper into the soul of a nation.
Says God through the voice of Ezekiel, “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked,…and not rather that they should turn from their ways and live?”