ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE

There can be no doubt about the misery of the Hizzbollah War, and there are no doubt countless genuine humanitarian tragedies, particularly among the Lebanese civilians...people who have had no real control over Hizbollah's actions.

But....there are always the "buts"....just what are these folks?

Is this Granny with the Rocket Propelled Grenade just an innocent bystander? Maybe she's on the way to the ATM...a girl needs some protection there; can't be too careful, y'know..

But, then there's the problem of the children looking over the berm with the "fighters." Surely children are "innocent" and "civilian" and need to be protected....but who is to protect them, when their big brothers are busy killin' Jews?

And where are the U.N. "Observers" that have been there for nearly 30 years? Maybe they're drinking mint tea with Hezbollah.

To point out the obvious, tearing out one's hair over "civilian casualties" gets dicey when faced with the realities of these pictures of "civilians."

I guess that's why it's called Asymmetrical Warfare.

The Islamofascists get to cheat. The Israelis, who everyone agrees were attacked in an open act of War, get to adhere to the Geneva Conventions.

Tha's cool. Nothing in the Conventions about Grannies, except that they're always "victims."

Horseshit!

Oh, by the way...I'm not the only guy who's noticed.

The U.N. humanitarian chief, returing from a visit to Beirut, accused Hizbullah on Monday of "cowardly blending" among Lebanese civilians and causing the deaths of hundreds.

"Consistently, from the Hizbullah heartland, my message was that Hizbullah must stop this cowardly blending ... among women and children," Egeland said, shortly before departing for Israel. "I heard they were proud because they lost very few fighters and that it was the civilians bearing the brunt of this. I don't think anyone should be proud of having many more children and women dead than armed men."

R.K. Bennett makes these points:

Maybe, as this terrible business in Lebanon unfolds, we'll finally get it:
Guerrillas like to hide behind civilians.

Muslim guerrillas take it a step further: "Civilians" are a weapon to them -- as much a part of the fight as the AK-47 or RPG they carry.

Those who have visited any Hezbollah installation in Lebanon over the years always remark on the fact that there are families, women and children, in and around the place. "Secret" bases are usually hidden in plain site. Houses or apartment buildings become weapons storage or even operations centers. An innocent shed or garage may contain a Toyota or a missile launcher.

Seldom, if ever, has a guerrilla movement been able to so openly and exquisitely weave itself into the fabric of a society as Hezbollah has done in Lebanon.

If the civilians in and around what are in effect operational bases happen to be of Hezbollah's own brand of Islam they automatically become a part of the "sacrificial," suicidal equation. Often without choice or foreknowledge, they die an "honorable" death in the battle against infidels or apostates.

If the civilians happen to be of some other persuasion, Islamic or otherwise, their deaths are not even worth a shrug. However, these mangled bodies and wailing women with arms outstretched do provide an immense propaganda payoff, especially in the Western "crusader" media -- which still places a quaint value on human life.

...Meanwhile, the headlines are filled with the shedding of blood, some innocent, some not so obviously innocent. But all the blood of this terrible struggle is on the hands of Hezbollah. As they have grown tactically and operationally wise in their hatred, they have shown more fully their utter disregard for human life. They have calculated the bloody effect of what they and their mentors in Tehran and Damascus have started.

So what if a beautiful city, Beirut, is destroyed? So what if thousands of the hapless, the ignorant, the innocent die? The Islamofanatic "vision" of submission or extermination is worth any cost. To the Hezbollah leaders, high on the furious anti-Semitic hatred of centuries, this is total war with implications and opportunities for them far beyond any geographical boundaries, and the very term "civilian" -- except for its temporary value in gulling the West -- does not apply.