# Fighting the hypothetical: when there's no right way **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 10, 2009, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994 "2009-08-10T23:05:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/41 "2009-08-12T18:09:40Z")
> [@emacknight](#): > > Your airstrike hits precisely doing 10,000 damage. > 6 terrorists killed. > 42 civilians killed. > Public outrage in Theoretica has created 10 new terrorists. > World opinion lowered, one trading partner lost. > > Roll again. This is a ridiculous understatement of what I was suggesting, which was to completely obliterate a random village. 48 deaths? Piffle. Make it 1000+ deaths or don’t waste my time. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/42 "2009-08-12T19:44:32Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > This is a ridiculous understatement of what I was suggesting, which was to completely obliterate a random village. > > 48 deaths? Piffle. Make it 1000+ deaths or don’t waste my time. That’s what you get for giving ACME your cluster bomb contract. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/43 "2009-08-12T23:52:13Z")
Given only those 2 choices, I’d implement the one that killed the least people ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/44 "2009-08-12T23:54:53Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Given only those 2 choices, I’d implement the one that killed the least people It’s kind of hard to judge which one that is, though isn’t it? I mean, if you can smack them down in one blow and kill 50,000 people, or have an unending war of attrition that kills 500 people a year, _forever_… ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/45 "2009-08-13T01:26:45Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Given only those 2 choices, I’d implement the one that killed the least people So let’s say you are a citizen of a country with 100 citizens, and you go to war with a country with 1000 citizens. You both have nuclear weapons. You are saying that you would kill your 99 fellow citizens and yourself? ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/46 "2009-08-13T15:36:24Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > It’s kind of hard to judge which one that is, though isn’t it? I mean, if you can smack them down in one blow and kill 50,000 people, or have an unending war of attrition that kills 500 people a year, _forever_… Not really true if we’re talking about the OP. He said that a more prolonged war would possibly kill more people and that is what I’m going by > [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > So let’s say you are a citizen of a country with 100 citizens, and you go to war with a country with 1000 citizens. You both have nuclear weapons. You are saying that you would kill your 99 fellow citizens and yourself? More deaths on the other side, not mine. Should have been more clear on that. Given my beliefs and values, committing suicide does nothing to pass that down, so I would look to end the war killing the least amount of people on the other side. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/47 "2009-08-13T17:09:37Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Not really true if we’re talking about the OP. He said that a more prolonged war would possibly kill more people and that is what I’m going by Which I’d say makes it _explicitly_ true that “It’s kind of hard to judge which one that is.” The OP states that it’s an unknown fact. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/48 "2009-08-13T18:37:23Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Which I’d say makes it _explicitly_ true that “It’s kind of hard to judge which one that is.” The OP states that it’s an unknown fact. Of course we dont know something until it happens. But if that is the consensus from my generals, then that is what I’m going by. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/49 "2009-08-13T18:45:40Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Of course we dont know something until it happens. But if that is the consensus from my generals, then that is what I’m going by. Fair enough - you have to make _some_ decision. I was just pointing out that the “I’d implement the one that killed the least people” plan is one that involves a fair bit of guesswork on its own, rather than being a clear and unambiguous mandate. (And, I listen to my (sub-)generals too - they all assure me that fewer lives will be lost if we annihilate the enemy right now. Also, they think that Theoreticans are all evil and deserve to die, but I’m sure that had no infuence at all on their suggestion about how to proceed.) ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/50 "2009-08-13T23:29:02Z")
Well, as I hope would be obvious… you nuke them all from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2009, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994/51 "2009-08-14T00:02:09Z")
> [@](#): > > What do you order your army to do? With smoke in the background and while loudly playing Ride of the Valkyries I’d have my eyes pointed off into the distance with one hand raised and would say ‘Release the Hounds’… To paraphrase: I love the smell of napalm in the morning…that smell of gasoline and civilians burning…I love the smell of napalm in the morning. It smells like…victory… Or something. Perhaps you should just nuke em all from orbit. As Finn says, it’s the only way to be sure… -XT [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-the-hypothetical-when-theres-no-right-way/505994.md?page=2)