Pictures from Afghanistan

Defense Secretary, Leon Panetta apologizes for photos published by The L.A. Times that show U.S. soldiers posing with dead body parts of enemy insurgents in Afghanistan.

The White House called these photos "reprehensible."

What exactly does the administration find so objectionable?

Is it the fact that our troops posed with pictures of dead enemies or the fact that these photos made their way into the public domain?

Is Panetta more upset with the soldiers or The L.A. Times? 

Wars are fought mostly by young men.  Often they are engaged in foreign lands, strange cultures, hostile surroundings and, since the 1960's, in combat with an enemy that is very difficult to distinguish from local "friendlies."

War is reprehensible, Mr. Panetta.

The psychological toll taken on our troops is painful and profound.  American combat units typically become tight-knit families, and when one of their own is lost, they want "payback."  (This is especially so when Taliban forces employ the custom of cutting off the heads of our dead soldiers and impaling them on sticks.")

Today is a digital age.  Thousands of pictures get taken everyday and with the internet, these pictures can be instantly seen by millions around the world.

War is hell.  War is obscene.  This is the reality.  It has always been so - and will always be so.

Perhaps we need more pictures and videos of the atrocities committed when warriors kill each other.  Then, maybe our citizens will demand that we stop altogether.  (It helped end the Vietnam "conflict.")

If our leaders truly regret these photos the best way to prevent more of them getting into the public domain is to quit waging war - especially in places where we cannot possibly win and in places where our sacrifices are not even appreciated by the local population at large.