History

I vividly remember 9/11.
Osama Bin Laden was not a name that the American people knew prior, but one that became a part of our vocabulary very quickly.
He had become my generation's, "Bad Guy".  The face of evil and hate.  His ideology created an atmosphere of misguided prejudice towards Muslims.  He changed our world in one day. 
In all that, I am hard-pressed to rejoice in his death.  I can understand the range of emotions felt by citizens around the world.  It's hugely emotional, I'm sure, to those who lost someone in 9/11. 
I'm proud of our country.  We had the technology, the skilled servicemen, and the patience to operate a mission of this importance.  I am intrigued by the intelligence gathering that led to finding him.
I feel a sense of relief that he is gone, even though I know the threat of terrorism is still real.  The reality is that we will always live in a world where hate resides, but we don't have to participate in it.
My hope is that from this, we as individuals and as a country, can work to draw those extremists one by one away from a world of hate.  I think about them or any extremist who participates in acts of violence.  How do we change them?  Are they a lost cause? 
I sure hope not.