How Bin Laden Was Right (And Where He Was Wrong)

A critical reading of Osama bin Laden’s “Letter To America”

indi.ca
15 min readNov 16, 2023
The TikTok kids are all right

History, when it is rewritten, will date the fall of the American Empire to September 11th, 2001. The hegemon lashed around for a while, but at that point, it was mortally wounded. Historically, the fall was quite quick, actually. After decades of occupying, bombing, and destroying the world, after centuries of genocide and slavery, America was finally hit back on September 11th, and once was all it took. America has been falling ever since, and the signal is just now reaching the brain.

I know that sounds crazy, so feel free to smash the unsubscribe button, I don’t mind. If you’re still here, understand that the TikTok generation — who has grown up with nothing but the ultra-violent reaction to 9/11 — has been re-reading bin Laden’s “Letter To The Americans,” and finding much to agree with. Because there is. Bin Laden actually denied the attacks, but the letter writes as if he definitely wanted to hit America, so take that as you will.

You have to read his letter critically, especially since he’s wildly (and incorrectly) anti-Jewish, but there is both truth in his words and effect in his (purported) actions. So if you’re open to rewriting history now — as the Empire is still falling down around us, as the blood…

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indi.ca
indi.ca

Written by indi.ca

Indrajit (Indi) Samarajiva is a Sri Lankan writer. Follow me at www.indi.ca, or just email me at indi@indi.ca.