Bombing Quote by Michael Herr
“We never announced a scorched-earth policy; we never announced any policy at all, apart from finding and destroying the enemy, and we proceeded in the most obvious way. We used what was at hand, dropping the greatest volume of explosives in the history of warfare over all the terrain within the thirty-mile sector which fanned out from Khe Sanh. Employing saturation-bombing techniques, we delivered more than 110,000 tons of bombs to those hills during the eleven-week containment of Khe Sanh.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Dispatches, 1977
Intense bombing campaigns aim to overwhelm enemies but cause massive destruction and moral controversy.
In simple terms: Overwhelming force causes devastation.
Key Takeaway
Consider ethical implications of total war.
Themes
war
ethics
military strategy
Mood
somber
critical
Type
historical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- military planning
- political decision
- humanitarian law
- public opinion
Key Concepts
history
morality
Questions to Reflect On
- Is total destruction ever justified?
- How do we weigh military success against civilian harm?
A Different Perspective
Such tactics can alienate civilian support.
