Carrie Buck
Justice Holmes means that the likes of Carrie Buck should be called for a lesser sacrifice as a means to cut off a line of heritage to avoid imbeciles. “Three generations of imbeciles are enough.” (Holmes, E., and Oliver Wendell). His idea focused on establishing a healthy society minus the mentally challenged people prone to abuses and are less productive to the country’s economy.
For Carrie Buck, specifically, lesser sacrifice means not having babies as research shows that being mentally challenged could be hereditary. She would sacrifice herself from not having babies to avoid mentally challenged babies like her. He perceived the sacrifice to be trivial as it would help prevent those who sap the strength of a society and build a healthy state.