Bill Dedman of msnbc.com spoke with the father of one 9/11 victim:

"The first thought I had in my mind was that it didn't bring my son back," said Jack Lynch, who lost his son, New York City firefighter Michael Francis Lynch, on Sept. 11, 2001. "You cut the head off a snake, you'd think it would kill the snake. But someone will take his place. People like him still exist. The fact that he's gone is not going to stop terrorism."

Lynch, 75, is a retired transit worker. His family's charity, the Michael Lynch Memorial Foundation, has made grants to send dozens of students to college. He said he would not celebrate bin Laden's death. "I understand that bin Laden was an evil person. He may have believed in what he was doing. I'm not going to judge him. I'm sure some people will look at this and they'll be gratified that he's dead, but me personally, I'm going to leave his fate in God's hands."

His son was 30 years old and was on Engine Company 40.