Is it okay to enjoy someone else's death?

[flamingzaroc121]

I think by now we've all heard about Osama being dead, and many people are very happy about it. But there are some friends of mine on facebook who seem to enjoy it a little too much.

I hated bin Laden as much as the next guy, and I know he would have been happy if any Americans died, but does that make it okay to celebrate his death?

 

[CELTICEMPIRE]

I never hated anyone, but this guy needed to die.

 

[Abaddon]

Yep, we don't need to be White Knights about this, some people deserve to die.

 

[rugbyLEAGUEfan]

I'm pretty sure deserving to die is not a pre requisite to its occurrence

 

[Camikaze]

I think this is a tricky question. I, for one, don't think you should "enjoy" the death of anyone, but it's quite hard to begrudge those that do. So I think it's "okay" to celebrate, even if it's not "good". Generalising to rejoice at death in general, I reckon there for it to even be "okay" is the exception to the rule.

 

[ParadigmShifter]

Depends if you believe Proverbs 24:17 or not I suppose.

 

[Abaddon]

Crap poll. Why is killing lots of people the only way if can be justifiable?

 

[Lillefix]

The guy should ideally have been tried at a court.

 

[Virote_Considon]

The guy should ideally have gone out the same way as Khattab: slowly and painfully.

 

[hoplitejoe]

i was just about to make this thread
i think it is wrong to celebrate any death.
you can look at this case in two ways, bringing justice to people killed in 9/11 and all the other evil things he was involved in. justice does not seem something to celebrate to me, it is something that should be anyway.
the other way is a military operation. in this everything should be practical, what Osama did need not come into it and a celebration would be improper.

 

[aronnax]

I don't think human beings should have been given the power to end someone's life.

Even though Osama is truly an evil force in creating terror, I don't think that he should have been killed or that people should rejoice at death. A human life, be it evil or good, is still a life and ending one and rejoicing at it is like to laugh at the horror human beings can do to each other.

I can understand people celebrating at what a person's death would bring or symbolise. I'm glad that now, Al-Qaeda has been dealt a moral blow that may reduce it's organisation to nothing. But I think to say that to be happy that Osama is dead for the sake of him being dead is just a cruel emotion of hatred that we should, as humans, get rid of, not allow to be expressed.

 

[Disgustipated]

I'd rather Osama was captured and put in prison and forced to watch Jersey shore reruns for the rest of his life.

Seriously, life in prison would have been a better punishment.

 

[Boundless]

I do feel a touch uncomfortable knowing there are people having parties celebrating someone's death, although I understand this must be a very cathartic day for many people. But as to the general argument, no, it is ok to enjoy someone's death. Human beings are all waiting for it, sometimes you just want people to hurry up a bit

 

[Thedrin]

I don't think that it's ok to enjoy someone's death, but ...

- A person's death can mean more than just that that person has died.

And in such cases it can be ok for people to enjoy the consequences of another's demise.

While in the case of Bin Laden and Al Qaeda, cutting of the head won't kill the beast, but to millions of people Bin Laden was the personification of Al Qaeda. That an organisation that has inspired so much fear to Americans has taken such a symbolicly severe setback (though probably not much of a material one) is bound to be a source of massive relief to many in the US. And great relief is often marked with celebration.

I'm uncomfortable with celebrating his death, even though I can see a justice in it, but I don't have a problem with celebrations that have occured. I'm sure my reasoning won't apply to everyone who celebrates, but it will apply to enough people that I can let it pass.

 

[GhostWriter16]

I don't like any of the choices.

We should rejoice that Osama is dead, and we should not rejoice.

We should be happy that Justice was Served, and that a danger to our country was removed, but we should NOT rejoice that he died for reasons of vengeance. This is about justice and security, not vengeance. If your friend kept it to that, he's fine IMO.

If it becomes about vengeance.... I really don't blame you, especially if you were personally affected by 9/11, but its still wrong.

 

[NovaKart]

I feel a certain amount of satisfaction that he is now dead but I feel weird about people actually celebrating it, it seems a bit wrong somehow regardless of who it is.

Strangely the first thing that came to my mind is Michael Jackson, not that there's any comparison between them but there hasn't been such a major death in the news since MJs death that I can think of.

 

[Communisto]

Theres nothing right or wrong about any of it. Stupid humans dying is stupid humans dying. The universe doesnt care. However you choose to feel is correct.

 

[Abaddon]

Theres nothing right or wrong about any of it. Stupid humans dying is stupid humans dying. The universe doesnt care. However you choose to feel is correct.

Does the rabbit rejoice in the death of the fox?

The fox may hear the rabbit cry, but he isn't coming to help

 

[Communisto]

Does the rabbit rejoice in the death of the fox?

The fox may hear the rabbit cry, but he isn't coming to help

Actually, the rabbit doesnt do anything but poop have intercourse and die.

 

[emzie]

I'm getting quite annoyed with some of my liberal friends saying it isn't okay to be happy osama is dead. You're sensitive, I get it, stop trying so hard to be seen being sensitive.