---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What America is tasting now is something…"
description: "\"“What America is tasting now is something insignificant compared to what we have tasted for scores of years. Our nation (the Islamic world) has been ta..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg"
---

#  What America is tasting now is something insignificant…

![“What America is tasting now is something insignificant compared to what we have tasted for scores of years. Our nation (the Islamic world) has been tasting this humiliation and degradation for more than 80 years. Its sons are killed, its blood is shed, its sanctuaries are attacked and no one hears…” quote by Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg)

> ““What America is tasting now is something insignificant compared to what we have tasted for scores of years. Our nation (the Islamic world) has been tasting this humiliation and degradation for more than 80 years. Its sons are killed, its blood is shed, its sanctuaries are attacked and no one hears and no one heeds. Millions of innocent children are being killed as I speak. They are being killed in Iraq without committing any sins. . . . To America, I say only a few words to it and its people. I swear to God, who has elevated the skies without pillars, neither America nor the people who live in it will dream of security before we live it here in Palestine and not before all the infidel armies leave the land of Muhammad, peace be upon him.””

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker frames long‑standing grievances of the Islamic world as a justification for violent resistance, urging divine retribution against perceived oppressors.

**In simple terms:** He claims historical humiliation justifies current violence.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the human cost of extremist narratives.

Themes

conflict religion politics

Mood

angry somber

Type

political propagandist

When to use this quote

- Middle East politics
- human rights advocacy
- counter‑terrorism training

Key Concepts

terrorism historical grievance

Questions to Reflect On

- What alternative paths exist for addressing historical grievances?
- How can societies break cycles of violence?

A Different Perspective

Violent rhetoric can further entrench cycles of retaliation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[America People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-people/) [America Say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-say-549303/) [America Tasting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-tasting-1340198/) [Retaliation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retaliation/) [Tasting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tasting/) [Tasting Humiliation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tasting-humiliation-4262394/)

## Related quotes

> [You can travel fifty thousand miles in America without once tasting a piece of good bread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/you-can-travel-fifty-thousand-miles-in-america-without-once-tasting-a/)

[Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/)

> [You don't have to be old in America to say of a world you lived in: 'that world is gone.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/you-don-t-have-to-be-old-in-america-to-say-of-a-world-you-lived-in/)

[Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/)

> [“I think maybe I'll like living here in America, I say to Ganwar Yeah, that's what I thought too, But you'll never really feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-applegate/i-think-maybe-i-ll-like-living-here-in-america-i-say-to-ganwar-yeah/)

[Katherine Applegate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-applegate/)

> [America may say that it values science, but it sure as hell doesn't want to pay for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-jahren/america-may-say-that-it-values-science-but-it-sure-as-hell-doesn-t/)

[Hope Jahren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-jahren/)

> [“In America they say "In God We Trust", but making marijuana illegal is like saying God made a mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-g-ortiz/in-america-they-say-in-god-we-trust-but-making-marijuana-illegal-is/)

[Kenneth G. Ortiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-g-ortiz/)

> [People who are looked up to in America will often say, 'I don't get math.' And they'll often say it like they're being humble,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sal-khan/people-who-are-looked-up-to-in-america-will-often-say-i-don-t-get/)

[Sal Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sal-khan/)

> [People on the right say to people like me, Oh, you hate America. And I always say, No, I love America. I want it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/people-on-the-right-say-to-people-like-me-oh-you-hate-america-and-i/)

[Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/)

> [Why do people like America? They say, well, you have the largest military in the world. Because you have more people, et cetera. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/why-do-people-like-america-they-say-well-you-have-the-largest/)

[Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/)

> [I think I speak for America when I say, nothing says NASCAR like Whoopi Goldberg.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-finnegan/i-think-i-speak-for-america-when-i-say-nothing-says-nascar-like/)

[Christian Finnegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-finnegan/)

> [Look, I went to war, and we knew by survey that when I went to war that we had a certain percentage in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-sestak/look-i-went-to-war-and-we-knew-by-survey-that-when-i-went-to-war-that/)

[Joe Sestak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-sestak/)

> [As of today, if I am asked abroad if I am a free citizen of the United States of America, I must only say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorraine-hansberry/as-of-today-if-i-am-asked-abroad-if-i-am-a-free-citizen-of-the-united/)

[Lorraine Hansberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorraine-hansberry/)

> [In America, you can't say to your family, 'Hey, I'm off to L.A. to make it as a songwriter; sorry I can't pay for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zara-larsson/in-america-you-can-t-say-to-your-family-hey-i-m-off-to-l-a-to-make-it/)

[Zara Larsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zara-larsson/)

> [In America we can say what we think, and even if we can't think, we can say it anyhow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kettering/in-america-we-can-say-what-we-think-and-even-if-we-can-t-think-we-can/)

[Charles Kettering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kettering/)

> [The planes were hijacked, the buildings fell, and thousands of lives were lost nearly a thousand miles from here. But the attacks on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-harkin/the-planes-were-hijacked-the-buildings-fell-and-thousands-of-lives/)

[Tom Harkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-harkin/)

> [If I think about most of America, and maybe I'm terribly wrong...but I think most of America would say that they're not in favor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-gunn/if-i-think-about-most-of-america-and-maybe-i-m-terribly-wrong-but-i/)

[Tim Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-gunn/)

## More by Osama bin Laden

> [Praise be Allah and prayers and peace upon Mohammed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/praise-be-allah-and-prayers-and-peace-upon-mohammed/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [We have not found it difficult to deal with the Bush administration in light of the resemblance that it bears to the regimes in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/we-have-not-found-it-difficult-to-deal-with-the-bush-administration/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [“We are following with great concern the preparations of the crusaders to launch war on the former capital of Muslims...and to install a puppet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/we-are-following-with-great-concern-the-preparations-of-the-crusaders/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [The war is between us and the Jews. Any country that steps into the same trench as the Jews has only itself to blame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/the-war-is-between-us-and-the-jews-any-country-that-steps-into-the/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [As long as I am alive there will be no rest for the enemies of Islam. I will continue my mission against them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/as-long-as-i-am-alive-there-will-be-no-rest-for-the-enemies-of-islam/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [When people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature they will like the strong horse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/when-people-see-a-strong-horse-and-a-weak-horse-by-nature-they-will/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [They were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so I said to them: be patient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/they-were-overjoyed-when-the-first-plane-hit-the-building-so-i-said/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [We treat them in the same way. Those who kill our women and innocent, we kill their women and innocent, until they refrain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/we-treat-them-in-the-same-way-those-who-kill-our-women-and-innocent/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [Acquiring weapons for the defense of Muslims is a religious duty... If I seek to acquire these weapons, I am carrying out a duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/acquiring-weapons-for-the-defense-of-muslims-is-a-religious-duty-if-i/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [For us, the idea was not to get involved more than necessary in the fight against the Russians, which was the business of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/for-us-the-idea-was-not-to-get-involved-more-than-necessary-in-the/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [Even as you enter the fourth year after the Sept. 11 attacks, Bush is still misleading and deluding you and hiding the real reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/even-as-you-enter-the-fourth-year-after-the-sept-11-attacks-bush-is/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [All that we have to do is to send two mujahedeen to the furthest point east to raise a piece of cloth on which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/all-that-we-have-to-do-is-to-send-two-mujahedeen-to-the-furthest/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [Speaking about climate change is not a matter of intellectual luxury – the phenomenon is an actual fact … all of the industrialised countries,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/speaking-about-climate-change-is-not-a-matter-of-intellectual-luxury/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [I support any Muslims, whether here or abroad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/i-support-any-muslims-whether-here-or-abroad/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

> [We are continuing this policy in bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy. Allah willing, and nothing is too great for Allah,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/we-are-continuing-this-policy-in-bleeding-america-to-the-point-of/)

[Osama bin Laden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

[Explore all 64 Osama bin Laden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/)

## More Retaliation quotes

> [There are some - called 'death fatigue' - people who just grow so tired of death, so they don't want to keep perpetuating death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/there-are-some-called-death-fatigue-people-who-just-grow-so-tired-of/)

[Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/)

> [Any country that grants asylum to Snowden risks retaliation from the United States, including diplomatic isolation and costly trade sanctions. Several don't seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/any-country-that-grants-asylum-to-snowden-risks-retaliation-from-the/)

[Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/)

> [To cut short this question of the law of retaliation, we must note that even in its primitive form it can operate only between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/to-cut-short-this-question-of-the-law-of-retaliation-we-must-note/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [No friend ever served me, and no enemy ever wronged me, whom I have not repaid in full.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sulla/no-friend-ever-served-me-and-no-enemy-ever-wronged-me-whom-i-have-not/)

[Sulla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sulla/)

> [What's somewhat puzzling is that Churchill himself knew what the reaction would be to any sort of aerial attack on cities, because in 1938…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/what-s-somewhat-puzzling-is-that-churchill-himself-knew-what-the/)

[Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/)

> [The rebels will be thinking about retaliation, what we have to do is stop; stop and transform it into a spiral of forgiveness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-manuel-santos/the-rebels-will-be-thinking-about-retaliation-what-we-have-to-do-is/)

[Juan Manuel Santos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-manuel-santos/)

> [I'm praying for healing for our nation. For retaliation that yields constructive results. Peaceful protests. We need each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tituss-burgess/i-m-praying-for-healing-for-our-nation-for-retaliation-that-yields/)

[Tituss Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tituss-burgess/)

> [The violence that has been going on incessantly in our community, getting worse and worse by the day, when we are slaughtering ourselves in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/the-violence-that-has-been-going-on-incessantly-in-our-community/)

[Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/)

> [“Real, lasting closure is never secured through retribution or retaliation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/real-lasting-closure-is-never-secured-through-retribution-or/)

[Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [Of ill-temper there are three kinds: irascibility, bitterness, sullenness. It belongs to the ill-tempered man to be unable to bear either small slights or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/of-ill-temper-there-are-three-kinds-irascibility-bitterness/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [But to cut off relations with an aggressor may often invite retaliation by armed action, and this would, in its turn, make necessary some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-henderson/but-to-cut-off-relations-with-an-aggressor-may-often-invite/)

[Arthur Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-henderson/)

> [There are people who are willing to suffer and swallow their tears at leisure, and God will not doubt reward them in heaven for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/there-are-people-who-are-willing-to-suffer-and-swallow-their-tears-at/)

[Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/)

> [“One bad turn does not excuse another.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/one-bad-turn-does-not-excuse-another/)

[Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/)

> [I am not afraid of retaliations. I don't have kids. I don't have a wife, no car, no credit. It may seem pompous, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charb/i-am-not-afraid-of-retaliations-i-don-t-have-kids-i-don-t-have-a-wife/)

[Charb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charb/)

> [“Retaliation retards your excellence. Nelson Mandela would not have been named as a great man if not for his courage to forgive those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/retaliation-retards-your-excellence-nelson-mandela-would-not-have/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

[Browse all 128 Retaliation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retaliation/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“What America is tasting now is something insignificant compared to what we have tasted for scores of years. Our nation (the Islamic world) has been tasting this humiliation and degradation for more than 80 years. Its sons are killed, its blood is shed, its sanctuaries are attacked and no one hears and no one heeds. Millions of innocent children are being killed as I speak. They are being killed in Iraq without committing any sins. . . . To America, I say only a few words to it and its people. I swear to God, who has elevated the skies without pillars, neither America nor the people who live in it will dream of security before we live it here in Palestine and not before all the infidel armies leave the land of Muhammad, peace be upon him.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Osama bin Laden"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something-insignificant-compared-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Retaliation"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something-insignificant-compared-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/osama-bin-laden-10612_retaliation_what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something_2111032.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“What America is tasting now is something insignificant compared to what we have tasted for scores of years…” — Osama bin Laden",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Osama bin Laden",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osama-bin-laden/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“What America is tasting now is...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something-insignificant-compared-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osama-bin-laden/what-america-is-tasting-now-is-something-insignificant-compared-to/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
