More barbarity in Iraq

From Reuters:

Maj. Gen. Michael Barbero, deputy director for regional operations in the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, said adults in a vehicle with two children in the backseat were allowed through a Baghdad checkpoint on Sunday.

The adults then parked next to a market in the Adamiya area of Baghdad, abandoned the vehicle and detonated it with the children still inside, according to the general and another defense official.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if the description is accurate, then that's not really a suicide attack, is it?

Anyway, this highlights how high the tension and uncertainty of trying to police a checkpoint. Profiling is really an uneasy balance; sure, young men travelling alone or in groups are the most likely terrorists, but terrorists can take advantage of that knowledge and send women or children on missions to try to catch guards unawares.

It works both ways flying on airplanes at home, too. Considering the profiles of the 9/11 attackers, the TSA would be nuts not to view groups of young Arab men with suspicion (while still treating them with courtesy and respect and letting them on their way assuming everything checks out OK). But at the same time, the white grandmother who gets pulled aside for a random check shouldn't act all indignant, either. If the TSA were to make a blanket policy of "we don't check white grandmothers" or "we won't check inside diaper bags," well, who do you think al Qaeda's next recruits would look like, and where would they hide their weapons? Use judgement based on past experience, but don't have blind faith in your preconceived notions.