words

this is a note that goes along with the previous blog on justice.

I looked though some news stories before writing this, and none of them called bin Laden's death assassination, though I think that's what it was. I also think that western media isn't calling it that because it's assassination carried out by "the good guys," here meaning Navy Seals backed by the US government. Assassination is the realm of crazy loners and Serbian underground groups.

just a thing to think about.

"Justice has been done?"

this blog was written for my class Engaging Justice, but I am really happy with it and decided to repost it here. It's not my usual thing, but whatever, whatever.

In class last week we talked briefly about the killing of Osama bin Laden, and how in his speech announcing this development President Obama used the phrase "justice has been done," and how that's just a really odd thing to say. The whole line was, "And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda's terror, justice has been done." It's an awkward line, and overall not his most eloquent speech, but he has the excuse of not knowing for sure that bin Laden was dead until after it actually happened. (Unless presidents write these things ahead; maybe he has a drawer of speeches prepared for every occasion, which can be brought out and polished as need be, much like how newspapers have pre-written obituaries for people they think are going to die.)
In saying that "justice has been done," Obama used justice to refer to punishment. It was punishment he referred to in the same speech when he said that he "authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice."
However, this punitive form of justice doesn't encompass every nuance of the word. In many cases justice means fairness. It means that everyone gets the respect and resources that they deserve. An argument could be made that because bin Laden was a terrorist getting what he deserved meant being killed by Navy Seals. But for ordinary people, especially minoritized people, justice means being allowed access to resources they've been deprived of and respect they've been denied. It seems that it is this second, social meaning that we're exploring in class.
I don't know if America's killing of Osama bin Laden was just or not. I read a lot, but don't feel that I am informed enough about global politics to pass judgement. My feeling on bin Laden's death are well explained by political commenter Nate Fick (who's name you may recognize from the book turned HBO miniseries Generation Kill). Fick wrote that "His death allows the United States to focus on other core interests - restoring America's economic strength, developing and implementing more sensible energy policies, and reinvigorating America's relationships with emerging powers around the world." Now that bin Laden is no longer a direct concern maybe we could move further away from panic and conflict and refocus our attention on issues like education and the economy. Now that "justice has been done" for those hurt by 9/11 maybe now, a decade later the government can start serving up another kind of justice for the oppressed within America's borders.

3/4 mark check in, preliminary best releases of the year so far

• Fucked Up - David Comes to Life
• James Blake - s/t
• Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High
• John Maus - (really long tittle)
• tune-yards - whokill
• Grieves - (i don't want to look it up)

I can't wait to hear

• cymbals eat guitars
• Girls
• Atlas Sound

college life

Dear friends and internets.
I have decided what I want for my recently gone by birthday.
I would like a fraternity. They would be like my giant drunken homoerotic dolls. They could have names and I could make up stories about them and it would be awesome. I'd take better care of them than they'd take care of themselves. I could create a straight edge frat! It would be lulzy. Clair says she won't give me a frat for my birthday because you can't own people, but Frat Bros aren't real people. Duh.

(Really, you should maybe get me the Sims, or maybe some therapy. Or cupcakes, or comic books. Or nothing. I would be ok with that. I don't expect anything holdable from the internet, though I give you all my love and attention.)

this is hardly even a song so how come it's stuck in my head?