--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We're going to bomb them back into the…" description: "\"We're going to bomb them back into the stone Age.\" — Curtis LeMay" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/curtis-lemay-23330_age_we-re-going-to-bomb-them-back-into-the-s_2713195.png" --- # We're going to bomb them back into the stone Age. ![“We're going to bomb them back into the stone Age.” quote by Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/curtis-lemay-23330_age_we-re-going-to-bomb-them-back-into-the-s_2713195.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/curtis-lemay-23330_age_we-re-going-to-bomb-them-back-into-the-s_2713195.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/curtis-lemay-23330_age_we-re-going-to-bomb-them-back-into-the-s_2713195.png) > “We're going to bomb them back into the stone Age.” [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A hard‑line stance advocating extreme retaliation to halt an adversary. **In simple terms:** Aggressive retaliation to stop an enemy. Key Takeaway Consider the costs of extreme force. Themes war deterrence escalation Mood serious critical Type political historical When to use this quote - policy debate - military planning - historical analysis Key Concepts military strategy political rhetoric ethical limits Questions to Reflect On - Is extreme force ever justified? - What are the long‑term effects of such policies? A Different Perspective Escalation may cause greater harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Bomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bomb/) [Bomb Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bomb-stone-2824157/) [Bombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) [Going Bomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-bomb-1058714/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stone/) [Stone age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stone-age/) [Stones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stones/) ## Related quotes > [“We should just bomb them back to the Stone Age.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mal-peet/we-should-just-bomb-them-back-to-the-stone-age/) [Mal Peet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mal-peet/) > [When I was 18, I went to the Soviet Union. I kept hearing that America was planning to bomb them - lots of bombs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/when-i-was-18-i-went-to-the-soviet-union-i-kept-hearing-that-america/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [I believe if you’re going to bomb someone you should know them first. It should hurt when you kill someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-steves/i-believe-if-you-re-going-to-bomb-someone-you-should-know-them-first/) [Rick Steves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-steves/) > [“The women will die just as much as the men will if we bomb ourselves back to the Stone Age. And then we'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-alderman/the-women-will-die-just-as-much-as-the-men-will-if-we-bomb-ourselves/) [Naomi Alderman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-alderman/) > [When we were making The Fugitive, we all thought it was going to bomb.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-pantoliano/when-we-were-making-the-fugitive-we-all-thought-it-was-going-to-bomb/) [Joe Pantoliano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-pantoliano/) > [We should bomb Vietnam back into the stone age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/we-should-bomb-vietnam-back-into-the-stone-age/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Humans had run barefoot for millennia, and some still preferred doing so in the modern Stone Age of the mid-20th century, when the handful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-rushin/humans-had-run-barefoot-for-millennia-and-some-still-preferred-doing/) [Steve Rushin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-rushin/) > [A whole bunch of months passed and I didn't hear anything and then he emailed and asked if I could do a little piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/a-whole-bunch-of-months-passed-and-i-didn-t-hear-anything-and-then-he/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [We'll blast them back into the stone ages!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-westmoreland/we-ll-blast-them-back-into-the-stone-ages/) [William Westmoreland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-westmoreland/) > [I've always loved The Strokes, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Queens Of The Stone Age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-rowsell/i-ve-always-loved-the-strokes-the-yeah-yeah-yeahs-queens-of-the-stone/) [Ellie Rowsell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-rowsell/) > [“You can get the man out of stone-age, but not stone-age out of man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/you-can-get-the-man-out-of-stone-age-but-not-stone-age-out-of-man/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [We have had the stone age; we have had the iron age; and now we have the sky age, and the sky telegraph, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-stanley-lee/we-have-had-the-stone-age-we-have-had-the-iron-age-and-now-we-have/) [Gerald Stanley Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-stanley-lee/) > [We've had the Iron Age, the Stone Age, this is the pissin' about age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/we-ve-had-the-iron-age-the-stone-age-this-is-the-pissin-about-age/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [“The Stone Age didn't end because the World ran out of stones”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niels-bohr/the-stone-age-didn-t-end-because-the-world-ran-out-of-stones/) [Niels Bohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niels-bohr/) > [We will not hesitate to employ all of our power and to attack every meter of Hezbollah and of Lebanon and return Lebanon to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoav-gallant/we-will-not-hesitate-to-employ-all-of-our-power-and-to-attack-every/) [Yoav Gallant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoav-gallant/) ## More by Curtis LeMay > [I'd like to see a more aggressive attitude on the part of the United States. That doesn't mean launching an immediate preventive war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/i-d-like-to-see-a-more-aggressive-attitude-on-the-part-of-the-united/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [We went over there and fought the war and eventually burned down every town in North Korea anyway, someway or another, and some in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/we-went-over-there-and-fought-the-war-and-eventually-burned-down/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [If we maintain our faith in God, love of freedom, and superior global air power, the future looks good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/if-we-maintain-our-faith-in-god-love-of-freedom-and-superior-global/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Native annalists may look sadly back from the future on that period when we had the atomic bomb and the Russians didn't. Or when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/native-annalists-may-look-sadly-back-from-the-future-on-that-period/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [My solution to the problem would be to tell the North Vietnamese Communists frankly that they've got to drawn in their horns and stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/my-solution-to-the-problem-would-be-to-tell-the-north-vietnamese/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [There are no innocent civilians, so it doesn't bother me so much to be killing innocent bystanders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/there-are-no-innocent-civilians-so-it-doesn-t-bother-me-so-much-to-be/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Today, shooting wars are won or lost before they start. If they are fought at all, they would be fought principally to confirm which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/today-shooting-wars-are-won-or-lost-before-they-start-if-they-are/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [If we'd lost the war, we'd all have been prosecuted as war criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/if-we-d-lost-the-war-we-d-all-have-been-prosecuted-as-war-criminals/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Don't like to do anything half-heartedly, even if it is a wicked and self-destructive avocation like smoking cigars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/don-t-like-to-do-anything-half-heartedly-even-if-it-is-a-wicked-and/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [I don't mind being called tough, since I find in this racket it's the tough guys who lead the survivors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/i-don-t-mind-being-called-tough-since-i-find-in-this-racket-it-s-the/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Sometime in the future - 25, 50, 75 years hence - what will the situation be like then? By that time the Chinese will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/sometime-in-the-future-25-50-75-years-hence-what-will-the-situation/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [ My solution to the problem would be to tell \[the North Vietnamese Communists\] frankly that they've got to draw in their horns and stop… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/my-solution-to-the-problem-would-be-to-tell-the-north-vietnamese-2/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [Every soldier thinks something of the moral aspects of what he is doing. But all war is immoral and if you let that bother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/every-soldier-thinks-something-of-the-moral-aspects-of-what-he-is/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [That's the reason some schools of thinking don't rule out a destruction of the Chinese military potential before the situation grows worse than it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/that-s-the-reason-some-schools-of-thinking-don-t-rule-out-a/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [You've got to kill people, and when you've killed enough they stop fighting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/you-ve-got-to-kill-people-and-when-you-ve-killed-enough-they-stop/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) [Explore all 26 Curtis LeMay quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." 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Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? 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