But I think that’s cold heart’s reasoning.
Just like a wounded soldier takes up a lot of resources, a sick patient will too.
But one guy with a backhoe can handle a lot of bodies in a day.
Not nearly as many resources, and for a shorter period of time. If the low lethality is meant to be part of the attack, then it's primariy an economic weapon meant to greatly diminish economic activity. Nobody will go anywhere if there is a 2% chance of dying from being in public.