Talk at one early Mother's Day brunch was all about Vincent Waldron. He was not there with his family Saturday. The 22-year-old soldier is in Afghanistan.
"My son is a stone's throw from Pakistan," Anita Waldron said. "For those of us who have troops there, it is a serious time."
U.S. forces are stepping up patrols in Afghanistan. Saturday, the Taliban unleashed a major assault on Kandahar in a move to re-gain control of the city. Afghanistan's president believes the attack was to avenge bin Laden's death, though the Taliban denies it as a motive.
Vincent Waldron's grandfather, who is also a World War II vet, does not buy it.
"I think it's worse now than it ever will be because I think they're awfully mad at us," Michael Forese said.
U.S. troops do have some supporters on the ground in Afghanistan. On Friday, Vincent Waldron called his mom to tell her a high ranking Afghan government official had only positive things to say about bin Laden's death.
"He was congratulating him on an incident al Qaida, so he felt honored he would take the time to congratulate the troops for this," Anita Waldron said.
National security specialist Patrick Hatcher says the high from bin Laden's killing will last only so long because the terror network did not die with the al Qaida leader.
"There are local versions of this terror network and they have leaders; it's that horrible feeling that you've killed the hydra but cutting off only one head but there are many other heads," Hatcher said.
Bin Laden's death has not changed the president's withdrawal plan for Afghanistan. The first wave of U.S. troops will leave Afghanistan in July.
