Recoil

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A large, jubilant crowd reacts to the news of Osama bin Laden's death at the corner of Church and Vesey Streets, New York City, adjacent to ground zero, during the early morning hours of 2 May 2011: photo by AP/Jason DeCrow

Revenge is not always sweet, once it is consummated we feel inferior to our victim.

Emil Cioran, from Histoire et utopie (History and Utopia), 1960

Revenge, at first though sweet,
Bitter ere long back on itself recoils.

John Milton, from Paradise Lost (X, 171-172), 1667

White House War Room during operation to assassinate Osama bin Laden: U.S. government photo, 1 May 2011

People read newspapers that carry headlines "Osama bin Laden killed" at a newsstand in Hyderabad, Pakistan, 2 May 2011: photo by Pervez Masih/AP