Contemplating Retaliation: Kill the Bastards

In the early years of the Cold War, a debate arose regarding whether the United States should retaliate in the event of a Soviet nuclear strike. Some argued that if such an attack occurred, the US would already have suffered a defeat. General Thomas S. Power, Commander in Chief of the Strategic Air Command, famously remarked, "Restraint? Why are you so concerned with saving their lives? The whole idea is to kill the bastards. At the end of the war, if there are two Americans and one Russian left alive, we win!"