Anyone with a video camera and an Internet connection can broadcast himself to the world; it's not that hard. Usually, unless you're that guy from "Evolution of Dance," the world doesn't care. Unfortunately, the extreme accessibility of online broadcasting can be problematic.
Speaking of problems, the United States has a big one. It's this highly dangerous, painfully drawn out and expensive thing called "wars in Iraq and Afghanistan." One of the main causes of these wars in the Middle East was the hateful and malicious scheming of Osama bin Laden that led to the events of Sept. 11, 2001. It was a significant event both in our private lives and in American history, not only because of the shock and suffering but also because it forced Americans to become a stronger, more aware and more cohesive country.
So why, after all of that, are we still tolerating bin Laden? This isn't about physically catching him; we can't catch him because we can't find him due to the fact that he's hiding like a sick rat in some mountainside hole. That can't be helped. The problem is that his hole has electricity and he continues to release videos and sound clips to the media. And we listen!
Most recently, bin Laden released a clip chastising the world - Muslim leaders in particular - for not giving more aid to the victims of the floods in Pakistan. In the past, he has released a video or sound clip on anniversaries of 9/11, and has thrown in a few random anti-American sentiments every few months. He also frequently comments on the Israel-Palestine conflict and has claimed responsibility for the attempted terrorist attack in Michigan last December.
Bin Laden uses these tapes to taunt us, to remind us of the pain he caused 10 years ago and to laugh at us because we're still clumsily engaged in a conflict that he helped initiate. He's a textbook bully who is desperately exploiting what little power he has left to berate America and to try to convince the rest of the world to share his penchant for terror and hate.
These pathetic ramblings are all bin Laden has left. If the recordings were looked at once and then destroyed, he would be without an audience and, by extension, without a life purpose. Instead, the tapes continue to be released to the general public, they continue to be watched and he continues to feel a sense of satisfaction knowing that somewhere, far away, he reminded an American of something horrible.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs answered a question about the newest recording at a press conference. He shouldn't have. Under no circumstance should a government as legitimate and strong as that of the U.S. acknowledge the trash that is a tape of bin Laden's. Even if it is kept for security reasons, no American should ever have to see it on a news page because it's not news; it is a desperate grasp for power from a washed-up terrorist.