--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every time we killed a thousand Bugs at a…" description: "\"Every time we killed a thousand Bugs at a cost of one M.I. it was a net victory for the Bugs. We were learning, expensively, just how efficient a total..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89d/robert-a-heinlein-209_adapted_every-time-we-killed-a-thousand-bugs-at_2216746.jpg" --- # Every time we killed a thousand Bugs at a cost of one M.I… ![“Every time we killed a thousand Bugs at a cost of one M.I. it was a net victory for the Bugs. We were learning, expensively, just how efficient a total communism can be when used by a people actually adapted to it by evolution; the Bug commisars didn't care any more about expending soldiers than…” quote by Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89d/robert-a-heinlein-209_adapted_every-time-we-killed-a-thousand-bugs-at_2216746.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89d/robert-a-heinlein-209_adapted_every-time-we-killed-a-thousand-bugs-at_2216746.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89d/robert-a-heinlein-209_adapted_every-time-we-killed-a-thousand-bugs-at_2216746.jpg) > “Every time we killed a thousand Bugs at a cost of one M.I. it was a net victory for the Bugs. We were learning, expensively, just how efficient a total communism can be when used by a people actually adapted to it by evolution; the Bug commisars didn't care any more about expending soldiers than we cared about expending ammo. Perhaps we could have figured this out about the Bugs by noting the grief the Chinese Hegemony gave the Russo-Anglo-American Alliance; however the trouble with 'lessons from history' is that we usually read them best after falling flat on our chins.” [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. War against bugs is portrayed as a costly learning process, illustrating the paradox of fighting an adaptable enemy and the difficulty of extracting lessons from history. **In simple terms:** War is costly and learning from it is hard. Key Takeaway Recognize the limits of historical analogies. Themes war history learning adaptation Mood critical analytical Type political military When to use this quote - military strategy - policy analysis - education - ethical debates Key Concepts Totalitarianism evolutionary arms race Questions to Reflect On - What can modern conflicts learn from past failures? - How do adaptive enemies change strategic thinking? A Different Perspective Historical lessons may be misapplied or ignored. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alliances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alliances/) [Bugs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bugs/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese/) [Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Hegemony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hegemony/) [Lessons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lessons/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Soldier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soldier/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Victory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory/) ## Related quotes > [Primitive, simplistic anti-Communism is all too often used as a common denominator for diverse efforts to perpetuate one's own power in a democratic system,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-kogon/primitive-simplistic-anti-communism-is-all-too-often-used-as-a-common/) Eugen Kogon > [“however the trouble with “lessons from history” is that we usually read them best after falling flat on our chins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/however-the-trouble-with-lessons-from-history-is-that-we-usually-read/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [We learned not to waste ammo even on warriors except in self-protection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/we-learned-not-to-waste-ammo-even-on-warriors-except-in-self/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [History is not usually what has happened. History is what some people have thought to be significant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/history-is-not-usually-what-has-happened-history-is-what-some-people/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [I'm interested in the history of the soul: the everyday life of the soul, the things that the big picture of history usually omits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/i-m-interested-in-the-history-of-the-soul-the-everyday-life-of-the/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [In the course of her education she had gone through the history usually put into the hands of young people... now her ripened reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-smith/in-the-course-of-her-education-she-had-gone-through-the-history/) [Charlotte Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-smith/) > [The game of history is usually played by the best and the worst over the heads of the majority in the middle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-game-of-history-is-usually-played-by-the-best-and-the-worst-over/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [When we talk about people or a party being on the wrong side of history, it usually requires some hindsight, a position of informed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-cupp/when-we-talk-about-people-or-a-party-being-on-the-wrong-side-of/) [S.E. Cupp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-cupp/) > [The good things in history are usually of very short duration, but afterward have a decisive influence on what happens over long periods of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/the-good-things-in-history-are-usually-of-very-short-duration-but/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [“History is usually a random, messy affair’,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/history-is-usually-a-random-messy-affair/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Children should be taught about history not as is usually the case now, that this is the record of long past events, which one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/children-should-be-taught-about-history-not-as-is-usually-the-case/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [When they come for your guns, give them the ammo first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-w-royce/when-they-come-for-your-guns-give-them-the-ammo-first/) [Kenneth W. Royce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-w-royce/) > [It took a qualified wizard to detect a summoning in progress. It required only a half-literate idiot with a twitch of power and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/it-took-a-qualified-wizard-to-detect-a-summoning-in-progress-it/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [If you reduce the guns and the ammo, you'll reduce the murders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/if-you-reduce-the-guns-and-the-ammo-you-ll-reduce-the-murders/) [Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/) > [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/) [William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/) ## More by Robert A. Heinlein > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [My folks tried to make a preacher of me and missed by a narrow margin… I would have made a good one if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/my-folks-tried-to-make-a-preacher-of-me-and-missed-by-a-narrow-margin/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Ninety percent of all human wisdom is the ability to mind your own business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/ninety-percent-of-all-human-wisdom-is-the-ability-to-mind-your-own/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [If we blow ourselves up we will do it by misapplication of science; if we manage to keep from blowing ourselves up, it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/if-we-blow-ourselves-up-we-will-do-it-by-misapplication-of-science-if/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Nor would anybody suspect. If was one thing all people took for granted, was conviction that if you feed honest figures into a computer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/nor-would-anybody-suspect-if-was-one-thing-all-people-took-for/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Women will forgive anything. Otherwise, the race would have died out long ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/women-will-forgive-anything-otherwise-the-race-would-have-died-out/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Most neuroses and some psychoses can be traced to the unnecessary and unhealthy habit of daily wallowing in the troubles and sins of five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/most-neuroses-and-some-psychoses-can-be-traced-to-the-unnecessary-and/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [No statement should be believed because it is made by an authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/no-statement-should-be-believed-because-it-is-made-by-an-authority/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“Some people are ants by nature; they have to work, even when it’s useless. Few people have a talent for constructive laziness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/some-people-are-ants-by-nature-they-have-to-work-even-when-it-s/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“The instinct to survive is human nature itself, and every aspect of our personalities derives from it. Anything that conflicts with the survival instinct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/the-instinct-to-survive-is-human-nature-itself-and-every-aspect-of/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“I tried to dig out of the computer a call directory for Luna. But it was still sulking. I could not get it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/i-tried-to-dig-out-of-the-computer-a-call-directory-for-luna-but-it/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“this has more aspects than a cat has hair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/this-has-more-aspects-than-a-cat-has-hair/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Never own more than you can carry in both hands at a dead run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/never-own-more-than-you-can-carry-in-both-hands-at-a-dead-run/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“In Wilson's scale of evaluations breakfast rated just after life itself and ahead of the chance of immortality." ~ By His Bootstraps / Robert A. Heinlein”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/in-wilson-s-scale-of-evaluations-breakfast-rated-just-after-life/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Ignorance is curable, stupid is forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/ignorance-is-curable-stupid-is-forever/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) [Explore all 888 Robert A. Heinlein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) ## More Adapted quotes > [A 'modern' man has nothing to add to modernism, if only because he has nothing to oppose it with. The well-adapted drop off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-canetti/a-modern-man-has-nothing-to-add-to-modernism-if-only-because-he-has/) [Elias Canetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-canetti/) > [. . . by natural selection our mind has adapted itself to the conditions of the external world. It has adopted the geometry most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/by-natural-selection-our-mind-has-adapted-itself-to-the-conditions-of/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [ David Mamet, Tim Kazurinsky, and Denise DeClue, who adapted \[ About Last Night\]. Between the three of them... I mean, it's always down to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/david-mamet-tim-kazurinsky-and-denise-declue-who-adapted-about-last/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [To be quite honest, I've been very blessed when I've worked with Hollywood. The studios that have purchased my work to be adapted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/to-be-quite-honest-i-ve-been-very-blessed-when-i-ve-worked-with/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [More birds have adapted to a changing world than have failed. Very few have the narrow tolerance of the ivory-billed woodpecker or the Bachman's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-tory-peterson/more-birds-have-adapted-to-a-changing-world-than-have-failed-very-few/) [Roger Tory Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-tory-peterson/) > [All our surest statements about the nature of the world are mathematical statements, yet we do not know what mathematics "is"... and so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/all-our-surest-statements-about-the-nature-of-the-world-are/) [John D. 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