Young Turks Question

So there's this clown/host, Cenk Uygur, whose show TV "Young Turks" has a more liberal and Hamas-loving bent to it, tweeted a question: "Where should Hamas fire their rockets from?" Which I think is a question that deserves a answer grounded in military reality and common sense. They may not be ready to hear this, but in the history of warfare and uprisings - ancient and modern - if fighting takes place within the confines of a populace, then there will be casualties within that populace. War is Hell and people, innocent and guilty alike, die in it. But the question got me to thinking about urban warfare and how much more devastating its consequences are versus traditional, field-of-battle, conflicts. Take the Communard Revolt of 1871 in France. A very large political group of communists, called the Commune, by way of revolt and a distracted French Army, took over Paris for about the space of one year. The Communards - like Hamas - did NOTHING to build up a regular army to fight the French on a given field of battle - away from civilians - so that things could be settled by the ancient laws of conquest. Instead, they strategically harbored their resources, organized and built an army from among civilians and sympathizers within Paris, then misguidedly chose to barricade themselves within the confines of the city of Paris proper and, well...daring the French Army to come into Paris and get them. By the time Thiers and MacMahon got their forces up and engaged, fully recovered from the defeat of the French at the hands of the Prussians a year earlier, not only was the Commune eventually crushed, the civilian population of Paris was hit hard and left reeling, having suffered from the scorched-earth policies of the Commune (they burned down the Tuileries and the Hotel de Ville) and subsequently from the vengeful arm of General Galifet of the French Army - a martinet who cut down both innocent and guilty Parisians alike. It was a bloody end to a rebellion, but it was textbook in the annals of warfare. I chose that example because here we have the Palestinians, governed by a dysfunctional, misguided, demonic, political entity known as Hamas - whose charter (constitution?), has called for the annihilation of their western, progressive, non-Islamic, democratic next door neighbor, Israel. This same Hamas - Jew-haters, Christian-haters, and haters of anyone except strict Sharia Law partisans - has not only been accused of firing rockets into Israel from non-military installations, but proven to have fired rocket into Israel from non-military installations by "objective" UN observers. In retaliation, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF), using high tech detection methods has counter-punched, destroying not only the rocket launch sites, but the surrounding environs near where the strikes have originated. Unfortunately, it has resulted in civilian casualties - women and children - slaughtered by IDF counter strikes. Yet amazingly, all I'm reading from the news is why the IDF has been so "heavy handed" against civilians and children. Now COME ON! REALLY? SERIOUSLY? While I have sympathy for the "women and wains" of Palestine who have suffered most grievously by this war business, it was their menfolk who brought it on. An old saying from the 'hood sorta sums things up for me: "Don't start nuthin' - there won't be nuthin'" - which leaves me with nothing but scorn and spite for Hamas and their tactics. I just cannot wrap my mind around the thought of grown men - the blatant cowards and pussies - knowingly and strategically placing missile launchers in the midst of schools, hospitals, mosques, and heavily populated areas expecting that people will be sympathetic to their "struggle" when things don't work out. As I heard from some wag, "Men typically hide their women and children and go fight - HAMAS hide BEHIND their women and children and try to fight. So to answer the Young Turks host's question: Let Hamas fire from where they may. If in the field of battle, let them die a soldiers death. No shame in that. But if their fight is from among the skirts and diapers of their own women and children then, Young Turk, why don't you tweet to the world that this fight is DISHONORABLE and the blood of the innocents are on Hamas' hands, not Israel's. NUFF SAID.