I agree with Victor David Hanson's that the rules of modern war are surreal and Ralph Peter's lessons so far make a lot of sense. But there is one lesson I am surprised that few mentioned.

The central problem of this war was Israel's inability to stop missiles from causing havoc in the North of the country. Next time, the entire country will be exposed. For when all said and done, it is clear that this may have been the first, but it will certainly not be the last, war in which such missile are going to play a central role. Just as the second Intifada revealed the efficacy of suicide bombing, this war revealed the efficacy of short and medium range conventional missiles. Indeed, I am sure such missiles are bound to become the terrorists weapon of choice. For now that the missile Genie has been let out of the bottle there is no putting it back.

Just think how different this war would have been fought and perceived had Northern Israel not been subject to daily missile barrages. And imagine the consequences of guided instead of unguided missiles. If I were sitting in South Korea or Japan I would certainly not be sleeping too comfortably. After all, North Korean missiles are far more sophisticated than those possessed by Hezbollah. MAD must be buried ASAP.

Consider how differently this war would have been fought and perceived had Northern Israel not been subject to daily missile barrages. And imagine the consequences of guided instead of unguided long range missiles which are sure to follow. If I were sitting in South Korea or Japan (if not the Western US) I would certainly not be sleeping too comfortably. After all, the North Korean missiles are far more sophisticated than those possessed by Hezbollah. Nor would I be too relaxed sitting in Baghdad, Sharm-Al Sheikh, New Delhi, Paris, London or New York. After all, missile trucks can be set up and, then, activated from afar. They will be.

Just like pre 9/11 Islamist terrorism, Western vulnerability to missiles was well known. Some such as a laser anti-missile gun, were successfully tested as early as 1998. Unfortunately, since the danger was not sufficiently internalized, such defensive measures was treated like poor step sisters to their more glamorous offensive ones and their funding repeatedly cut. Since the Lebanon war has done for missiles what the first Intifada did for suicide bombing, we must act before we are faced with a missile 9/11. Hence, an anti-missile"Manhattan project" is a must not only for Israel but for the US and the rest of the civilized world.

Continued delays due to inadequate funding would be unpardonable. There is not a minute to lose. Too much time has already been lost. So, let's have action, please.

Update: David Foster of Photon courier has an interesting post on the subject and, Israeli defense minister Peretz is apparently looking into some laser technology being currently tested in Iraq. You can see some of the missiles amongst the display of captured Hezbollah weapons. Debka reports that Iran is disappointed with Hezbollah's failure to exploit its missiles in a more robust fashion.