Scorched-earth defense
The scorched-earth defense is a form of risk arbitrage and anti-takeover strategy.
Scorched earth
During the wars with Native American tribes of the American West, under James Carleton's direction, Kit Carson instituted a scorched-earth policy, burning Navajo fields and homes, and stealing or killing their livestock. He was aided by other Indian tribes with long-standing enmity toward the Navajos, chiefly the Utes. The Navajo were forced to surrender due to the destruction of their livestock and food supplies. In the spring of 1864, 8,000 Navajo men, women and children were forced to march 300 miles to Fort Sumner, New Mexico. Navajos call this "The Long Walk." Many died along the way or during the next four years of their internment.