“War is largely asymmetrical today. The bad guys move in small units and mostly do ambushes. We can respond in companies, not divisions.”
Why do you think the Germans didn’t try that small unit ambush business in 1945? Or the Japs? It’s because Divisions broke their will. Then we outlawed their fake religions of Aryan and Hirohito being a god.
We should have nuked Mecca and been done. You only win a war breaking the hearts of the enemy. We keep honoring their sick religion.
You’re right, total war is the only way to make the enemy quit.
In the real world, we have these marshmallow hearted critters called politicians, who like to play at war.