How quaint it seems now, in an age of smart bombs and technological warfare, to imagine armies of gentlemen meeting each other on the battlefield, while onlookers picnic in the grassy fields beyond.

How civil and yet uncivilized.

But what is civilized about the photographs of Iraqi detainees, abused at the hands of American and perhaps British soldiers, now being published in the media?

Some have chosen to chastise newspapers and TV networks for showing the photographs at all, arguing the media is putting American lives at stake by highlighting the behavior sure to incite more hatred of Westerners.

But we must hold responsible the soldiers who know better than to treat other humans with such disrespect. If the allegations are true, these soldiers were not all early 20-somethings, they were in their 30s and even 40s.

Some people have said the abuse of detainees is nothing compared to the mutilation of the bodies of four American contractors, killed and then abused themselves. That is true.

But why would we want to lower ourselves even one iota to such behavior?

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld of Tuesday called the treatment of the detainees &uot;unacceptable and un-American.&uot; He is right. And we hope he is also right when he says the treatment was isolated, which makes it all the more frustrating. So many young American men and women are doing the right thing in defending Iraqi freedom, and a few soldiers may have further ruined the reputation of their fellow men and women in uniform.

It is not the photos themselves which are doing damage to the U.S. reputation in the Arab world; it is the treatment which reaches so far below what is American &045;&045; and what is humane.