Collective Punishment
A few weeks ago, a shul-friend of mine casually suggested the following "solution" to the Arab-Israeli conflict: "for every one they kill of us, the IDF should kill five of them." I think the left is quick (and correct!) to jump on the moral reprehensibility of this kind of collective punishment - of wanting to bomb all Palestinians into submission, or a Kahanist ethnic cleansing, but could benefit by responding to the efficacy of these proposals as well. Telling acquaintances that their politics are abhorrent to me won't change their minds, but a conversation about the efficacy of their politics could be productive. Here are three sources on the (in)effectiveness of bombing an enemy into submission that I came across in recent readings: 1 - In his book "On Killing, Lt. Col. Dave Grossman discusses the military theory that inspired the extensive strategic bombing campaigns that were waged during WWII, and the consequences of those campaigns. Prior ...