Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue*

The most wanted monster in the world has been killed. Finally!

After the weekend, and the little sleep I had, I went to bed just before 10p. Around 10.30 I was told to stay tuned for breaking news from the President. Flipping between channels…waiting…dozing…waiting…dozing…

I dozed off for good because the next thing I knew, the TV was off and it was 4am. Pissed!

Obviously I was able to get up to speed quickly when I was getting ready this morning. Once I arrived to work (because battery was dead on phone and I couldn’t catch up on my commute in) I was scrolling through breaking news in my email. I saw lots of eager news reports trying to be the first. For example:

10.57pm: Congressional and administration officials tell [news outlet] Osama bin Laden is dead. He was reportedly killed in Afghanistan. President Barack Obama is expected to address the nation shortly.

11.02pm: Osama bin Laden killed at a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after a firefight, President Obama said Sunday.

They couldn’t wait the five minutes to confirm in which country he was killed? There’s such a race to be the first to break news. We see typos all the time. When Gabrielle Giffords was shot in Tucson, I can’t tell you how many times I saw the spelling Tuscon. Spell check perhaps? 

After scrolling online to see the news coverage I had slept through, I moved onto Facebook and Twitter. Of course they were exploding. I read loads of statuses, some were even before Obama spoke, giving a heads up to those who may not have heard there was going to be an announcement.

While scrolling on Facebook, I saw a friend’s post that linked to a survey on Mashable.com – ‘How did you hear about OBL’s death?’ At the time of this writing, nearly twenty hours after the survey was posted, Twitter is in the lead, followed by Facebook. TV is fourth. There is no doubt that social media has become a critical part of the news and entertainment cycle as noted by my Royal Wedding experience.

To Americans abroad, please be mindful and vigilant during your travels. As expected, the State Department issued a Travel Alert for ‘enhanced potential for anti-American violence.’ Continue to travel, just be aware.

Thank you to our brave military, and those who gave up their lives for the freedoms we enjoy. And let’s not forget those we lost on September 11, 2011, those we lost on the USS Cole and others who have lost their lives to an act of terrorism. NEVER FORGET.

G-d Bless the USA.

* Credit to Toby Keith for the title of today’s post…it’s the title of one of his songs for you non-country fans. Great song. Take a listen.