Houthi

Last week the Houthi, a rebel group in the Middle East, fired on an American ship, using one missile and one drone. No one was killed. Insulted American TV commentators reacted by calling for an escalation. They argued we should kill Houthi in batches and teach them a lesson.  

Here is the problem. If we kill Houthis in batches, the Houthis will next try to kill us in batches. Another pointless American war will take off. 

Why not follow the Code of Hammurabi instead? The Code is the oldest legal system on the planet, and it is local, having been written in Babylon (Iraq). Hammurabi argued that we are entitled only to an eye for an eye. In other words, we are entitled to attack the Houthi with one missile and one drone, being careful to kill no one. We do to them exactly what they did to us. That's fair. Do not escalate.