By Doug Gross, CNN
May 9, 2011 3:22 p.m. EDT | Filed under: Web
Partyin', partyin' -- yeah! How better to dishonor the memory of Osama bin Laden than to make him watch "Friday?"
(CNN) -- In the unruly mind of the Internet, death's not enough punishment for some people.
Which may explain why Osama bin Laden has been on the virtual receiving end of what some might consider more ignoble fates -- such as having to wear Princess Beatrice's ridiculous wedding hat or watch Rebecca Black's insipidly catchy "Friday" video.
It's been more than a week now since a U.S. special forces team stormed bin Laden's compound and killed the terrorist leader. And the debate continues as to whether celebrating death, even the death of a villain, is appropriate.
But plenty of folks online have clearly decided that the best way to remember a mass murderer is with mockery.
One of our favorites? What's Osama bin Watchin'?
The webpage, which creator Tom Scott bills as "possibly the most tasteless thing I've ever made," combines imagery released by the U.S. military last week with the magic of YouTube.
Among what U.S. officials have described as a treasure trove of information confiscated at bin Laden's compound, one of the most high-profile items has been video of the terrorist leader appearing to flip though channels watching footage of himself.
Scott has taken a still image from that video and let users add a link to a YouTube video to make Osama appear to watch that clip on his television.
There's something bizarrely entertaining about making bin Laden watch "Friday," or a video by Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga. We also amused ourselves playing a Charlie Sheen scene from the movie "Navy SEALS."
Oh, sweet, sweet irony.
Scott's YouTube setup joins reams of other bin Laden spoofs that have shown up online.
We've already taken a look at the ridiculousNext Media Animation "recreation" of the raid that killed him.
Kuma Games, which specializes in video games based off of real-world events, rushed to post a "kill bin Laden" update to its online Middle East series just four days after his actual death.
Writing for gaming website Kotaku, Brian Crecente ponders whether the game -- which gives players five minutes to invade the compound, kill bin Laden, gather intelligence and destroy a faulty helicopter -- is in good taste.
"Is this essentially the same as 'spiking the football' after a victory, something President Barack Obama has repeatedly said he doesn't want the U.S. to do?" he wrote. "Is this a game that is cathartic, educational, or just ghoulish?"
The Internet's requisite PhotoShop brigade is, of course, still hard at work on altering bin Laden's likeness (along with the now-iconic photo of President Obama and his team following the raid from the White House situation room).
Osama has been forced to wear Princess Beatrice's florid hat from last month's British royal wedding and has even been mocked by "Bed Intruder" video star Antoine Dodson. (See those images and more in this New York Daily News roundup).
So, is some of the light-hearted mockery a little over the top? Sure.
But a week on, the wits of the Web have clearly decided it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
Credit: CNN (www.cnn.com)
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