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The End of bin Laden

The news of the death of Osama bin Laden is cause for great happiness [May 20]. Justice has been served. Yet the families and friends of the victims of 9/11 will forever have to deal with the loss of their loved ones. Therefore they must know that their struggle is ours, and even while we rejoice in this news, we do not forget that they still struggle. We are, as President Obama noted, "united as one American family."

Sardar Anees Ahmad, WATERLOO, N.Y.

I feel like a firsthand observer of bin Laden's demise, thanks to TIME's excellent reporters and photographers. The events and emotions were vividly and powerfully depicted. This veteran of the World War II South Pacific campaign appreciated your special report on this historic moment.

Dan Silkiss, LOPEZ ISLAND, WASH.

So as not to repeat the mistakes of the past, it is important that we remember it took an intelligent and steady President, not a simpleminded cowboy wannabe, to finish the job with bin Laden. Actions speak louder than words.

Rob Bishop, PHOENIX

Our leaders and the media are grandstanding about the death of bin Laden, with ever more details about the raid being released. Why not just let terrorists wonder how we identified his hideout and not divulge that the trail began with information from Guantánamo? Why identify Seal Team 6, enabling terrorists to seek out team members and their families for retaliation? For that matter, why have we published our rules of engagement or the limits of our interrogation techniques? We are at war. "Loose lips sink ships" is a dated slogan but a lesson we need to relearn.

Cloyd Gatrell, CARLISLE, PA.

Frankly, I find the revelry and celebration of another human being's death disgusting, and no matter how wicked that man, there is no excuse for thoughtless execution. Bin Laden was a murderer, and I had hoped that the U.S. would not stoop to his level.

Amir Fleischmann, TORONTO

Your covers of Saddam Hussein, Abu Mousab al-Zarqawi and bin Laden, all with the dramatic red X, stand in poor contrast to the original cover of Adolf Hitler. The actions of those three, though they brought devastation, pale by comparison with Hitler's responsibility for the loss of millions of lives, the social and physical destruction caused by his warfaring and the crippling economic effects of World War II.

Darlene L. Reiter, SHERIDAN, WYO.

9/11's Long Shadow

Nancy Gibbs claims we are more tolerant ["Where Victory Lies," May 20]. Were it only so. I find the mood against immigrants and people of Arab descent poisonous and gaining power. Witness Donald Trump's questioning of our President's nationality and faith. It's better than it was 60 years ago, but we're not the peaceful utopia Gibbs seems to want to present.

Debbie Branan, COVINGTON, GA.