[SJackson]

I one drops bombs on a POW camp, doesn’t one tend to kill the POW’s?

These were death camps, the inmates weren't expected to survive. The arguement is that by bombing the camps, some might have escaped, and that by bombing the rails, the trains would have been stopped, leaving the Germans with the less desireable option of doing the killing in a less efficient, more public manner. It's an interesting historical arguement, but pure speculation, and I don't think conclusions can be drawn from either decision.

[rmlew]

These were death camps, the inmates weren't expected to survive. The arguement is that by bombing the camps, some might have escaped, and that by bombing the rails, the trains would have been stopped, leaving the Germans with the less desireable option of doing the killing in a less efficient, more public manner. It's an interesting historical arguement, but pure speculation, and I don't think conclusions can be drawn from either decision.

They weren't all death camps. Aushwitz was a comlex of many camps. Only Birkenau was an off-the-train gassing camp. The others had untermenchen divided between those who could work and those who could not. The inform, old, children etc were killed immediately.
For most of the rest it was a work-till-you-die camp. Starvation diets, limited sanitation, rags for clothing, and brutality and beatings ensure that most did die. A few who had skills useful to the Nazi war effort were housed in special factories leading to lower mortality rates.