"Forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened. … If something is serious and it is necessary to take counter-measures, you have to take counter-measures."

--The Dalai Lama at USC in Los Angeles on Wednesday when asked about bin Laden's assassination. He also acknowledged that the al Qaeda leader may have deserved compassion and forgiveness, according to the Los Angeles Times. It's not exactly an endorsement for retribution--and as one blog noted, the quote was included by the Times with a somewhat dubious lack of contextual details--but also not exactly what you expect to hear from a man who has said that he tries to avoid swatting mosquitoes.

Photo by the AP

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at erosenberg at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Eli Rosenberg