They feel safe from an attack in kind because sand doesn't burn.
They seem to have forgotten that it can be instantly turned into glass should we so desire...
When my daughter was in high school one of her teachers gave an assignment where the students were to come up with a plan for how to deal with Saddam in Iraq (this was before we went into Iraq) the students were to present an idea, and then another if the first didn’t work- all the way to 10. My daughter wrote for scenerio 10- if all else fails turn Iraq into glass with nukes. She recieved no credit for that answer and was upset- she told me she was nice with her other nine steps- she just really felt if none of them worked- then glass it is.
But it can be turned to glass.