“would rather be drilled by a .223 or .308 sized bullet?””
At rifle velocities, it doesn’t make a whit of difference.
My paper targets beg to differ.../S
It's a pretty big difference when you talk about the energy, range, penetration, etc. "Rifle" rounds are FAST bullets and therefore carry more energy than a typical handgun round. As far as close range, unarmored tissue lethality goes, I must agree with you. Accept in a crowd, the .308 will go through a couple more bodies than the .223 with less deflection or ballistic degradation. It's a heavier projectile with almost the same velocity. In this regard, the .308/30-06 round is more lethal. I doubt you would argue that there is negligible difference between the .223 and .50 because of speed. The degree of lethality with regards to caliber is actually scaleable.
Note: I didn't delve into the larger issue of the wound cavity size created by the higher energy in soft tissue. That should go without saying.
Big difference. There is a reason why you can’t hunt deer with .223 in many states. The .308 with similar bullet construction will do much more damage, making a kill when the .223 leaves a wounded animal. I’ve seen people shot with both and the effect is similar in human flesh.