When death brings a smile

Late yesterday afternoon I heard the news that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the loathsome super-thug hailed by none other than Osama bin-Laden as a "prince of Al-Qaeda," had fallen victim to a couple of well-placed 500-pound bombs dropped from F-16 jets flying over what was supposed to be one of his safe houses. The first image that came to my mind was not of Zarqawi, however; rather, it was of the cover of the May 7, 1945 edition of Time magazine, which featured a stark image of Adolf Hitler's familiar visage with a red "X" drawn through it.

Inside, the account of Hitler's death included the observation that after nearly six years of carnage and slaughter all over Europe, news of this particular death, coming on the heels of the millions of others which had preceded it during the war, was actually greeted with smiles of relief -- and appropriately so.

I, for one, understand that sentiment, because I felt it yesterday when I learned of Zarqawi's violent demise. I also thought of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Herblock cartoon which appeared when Joseph Stalin died in 1953; it featured Death, looming dark and sinister in his black robe and hood, with his scythe held over his shoulder, greeting the newest arrival in his realm by saying, "You were always a good friend of mine, Joseph."

For some of my favorite commentaries about this bit of unquestionably good news, click here, here, and here.