It Was Inevitable That Some Of The SEALs Involved In The Bin Laden Raid Would Want To Discuss Their Role In Public

A Navy SEAL stalks a target during a training exercise.

It Was Inevitable That A Navy SEAL Would Speak Publicly About The Bin Laden Raid -- Pierre Bienaimé, Business Insider

Mark Bowden is one of the preeminent journalists of this era, with much of his work focusing on the fraught relationship between the US and the Islamic world. His books include now-classic works of reportage like Black Hawk Down and Guests of the Ayatollah, and he wrote a 2012 book about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, The Finish. He is currently a national correspondent for The Atlantic, as well as a contributing editor at Vanity Fair.

Business Insider spoke to him about the 35th anniversary of the embassy hostage crisis, the fight against ISIS, and why it was inevitable that participants in the Bin Laden raid would want to discuss their role in public. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Read more ....

My Comment: When details first broke about the Osama Bin Laden raid, I was disappointed that many of the details were kept secret. But I will confess that at the time I strongly believed that some (if not all) of the details would eventually leak out .... and probably sooner rather than later. So yes .... it was inevitable that a Navy SEAL would eventually speak publicly about the Bin Laden raid .... and sooner rather than later.

Should we be surprised .... no. We do live in a new age where mass communications and information is always readily available at our fingertips. We are also living in a very narcissistic age .... where many of us crave and hunger for attention and recognition. Are US Navy SEALs immune from this ... obviously not .... but there are still many US Navy SEALs who are remaining quiet ... and they should at least be applauded and recognized for that.

This Has Not Been A Good Year

U.S. Marines observe surrounding compounds during a security patrol in Washir district in Helmand province, Afghanistan, Sept. 29, 2014. The Marines are assigned to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment. The Marines patrolled to disrupt enemy operations against the Bastion-Leatherneck Complex. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John A. Martinez Jr.

A Year Of Living On The Brink -- Daniel Henninger, Wall Street Journal

Ebola, ISIS, Ukraine, a stock-market wipeout—there’s nowhere to hide.

History will mark down 2014 as the year predicted 49 years ago by Martha and the Vandellas. In 1965 the group recorded a Motown classic, “Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide.” We’re there, at the brink.

Liberia, ISIS, Ukraine, Hong Kong, a hospital fighting Ebola infections in Dallas, the year’s stock-market gains obliterated, and I almost forgot—just last week Secretary of State John Kerry warned that climate change could end life as we know it.

Then this week the clouds parted and the year’s best news arrived: Led by Europe’s sinking economies, global economic growth is falling, taking stocks and bonds with it, and the world’s central bankers say they have run out of ideas on doing anything about it.

How this is good news requires explanation.

Read more ....

My comment: This post by Daniel Henninger focuses on the economy .... but I would also add that the national security situation does not look promising either. The war against the Islamic State is going to be a messy one .... and one that I predict will carry-on into the next U.S. Presidency.