The Propaganda Delivery System

The Post's Anthony Shadid, like many in nothern Israel and southern Lebanon, is one brave dude. Today, also like many others, he files from among Hezbollah terrorists, this time from Jwayya, Lebanon, in Among Militiia's Patient Loyalists, Confidence and Belief in Victory. Western reporters really haven't grappled with their role in the information war against their own civilization.

Shadid:

"On the ground, face to face, we're better fighters than the Israelis," said Hajj Abu Mohammed, a bearded, 44-year-old militiaman in the small village of Srifa, whose walkie-talkie crackled and cellphone rang with a Hezbollah anthem....

"We'll never submit to oppression, whatever the force applied, whatever the time it takes," one of the group gathered in Jwayya said Tuesday...

While the war outside may have inflated the rhetoric, no one seemed to have any doubts."The aggression gives birth to resistance," Abu Ali said....

These are, simultaneously, accurate quotes and recruitment slogans for Hezbollah. You know, the guys that killed 241 U.S. servicemen and 58 French paratroopers in the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing. Hezbollah continues with a lovely variety of terrorist actions today, and via Michael Totten we hear of Christopher Albritton being threatened by Hezbollah to report the correct things in Tyre--really only the latest report of intimidation for those who are paying attention.

No doubt this challenging environment will be discussed in some think tank seminar. Some people will think that's enough.

It's a war. There are sides.

UPDATE: Brad Wilmouth at Newsbusters finds common ground with... Dan Rather? From his interview with Bill O'Reilly:

"It's a problem that those of us in journalism have been reluctant to address -- I do not exclude myself from this criticism -- reluctant to address that Hezbollah is a terrorist organization. It's committed to the destruction of Israel. It isn't committed to trying to just gain territory. It's committed to its destruction.