In World War two there were many battles fought. One of the most controversial issues for the United States was not even a battle though. It was the use of the atomic bomb on two Japanese cities. I believe that the US was right in using the atomic bombs on Japan. The Japanese planned a secret attack on the United States.
The Japanese were seen as bloodthirsty savages willing to die rather than give up. Their defense of Okinawa and the thousands of kamikaze pilots only confirmed this fear in the eyes of the Americans. Truman felt the bomb would save more lives in the long run, due to avoiding another six or more months of carnage that the war was known for. Truman later said he estimated fighting losses numbered in the several hundred thousands, while bomb losses numbered in the tens of thousands since he intended to spare as many women and children as humanly possible. Using the bomb pretty much guaranteed that the U.S. would occupy Japan without the Soviets as well as sending a clear message to the Soviets to go slow and careful in Europe and it’s territories.
The ones who believe this, do not comprehend the many different factors in war and how the route that was chosen was best for both parties that were directly affiliated with the bombings. The cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would have been fire bombed if the atomic bombs were not dropped, causing similar damage and death counts to the atomic bombs. According to Kyoko Iriye Selden, "The most influential text is Truman's 1955 Memoirs, which states that the atomic bomb probably saved half a million US lives— anticipated casualties in an Allied invasion of Japan planned for November. Stimson subsequently talked of saving one million US casualties, and Churchill of saving one million American and half that number of British lives"(1). With this amount of casualties projected, a land invasion would have trumped the death toll of D-Day.
Devastation, destruction, terror, and straight up fear, is what people would’ve seen if they visited Nagasaki or Hiroshima after the atomic bomb was dropped on those cities. The number of scientists who were involved in the development of the atomic bomb is unbelievable. The bombs were very unique objects, whether it was the size of the bomb, or even the amount of explosives inside. The names of the atomic bombs will forever be remembered for the chaos they brought to Japan. The decision to drop the bombs was one of the most difficult things President Truman had to do during his Presidency.
More recently, there was Hitler's genocidal six-million-death final solution to the Jewish problem, and the Communists' ten of millions of mass murders continue to this day. All this has been done without benefit of nuclear power. Many made comments came at the beginning of the atomic or nuclear age, and while the source and the judgment deserve respect, experience has shown that nuclear power in Western hands deterred a third world war and ultimately caused the collapse of the greatest
After multiple ideas along with deep thought, Truman along with the chiefs decided the most efficient, least costly and less bloody approach would to be dropping the atomic bombs on the Japanese home land. The essay states “evidence points to the conclusion that he acted for the reason he said he did: to end a bloody war that would have become even bloodier had invasion proved necessary” pg 175 Readings in United States History. The writer’s purpose of this essay is to educate the readers about the difficulty of this decision. I believe the writer did a fine job explaining the whole process. The Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombing are two greatly important milestones in the United States history, and the essay “The Biggest Decision: Why We Had to Drop the Bomb,” by Robert James Maddox is a perfect essay to be read over and discussed in a class like this.
Even if Truman had decided to use the bomb, there was no reason to bomb Hiroshima. Hiroshima had limited military value and was mostly civilians, outnumbering the soldiers six to one. Over 200,000 men, women and children died because of the bomb, most of the casualties being women, children and old men. Although President Truman said the use of the atomic bomb was also used to reduce casualties on the Japanese side, if he cared so much about Japanese casualties, he could have just changed the unconditional surrender to make it easier for the Japanese to
Dropping the Atomic Bomb By Raymond Wisniewski The United States decision to drop the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a decision to end the war the war faster. The bombs were against the Japan by the United States. The decision by President Harry Truman was the biggest decision the United States had ever made. Before Truman, Franklin Roosevelt has let a team of the Army Corps the task of creating the bomb. The project was headed by Major Leslie R. It became known as “The Manhattan Project”.
Moreover, other countries claimed the right of nuclear weapons to defend their citizens. Consequently, the tragic bombings became the example of an arm’s race instead of peace. Furthermore, since Japan was already on the brink of collapse the bombing was unnecessary, and peace talks would have taken place within a decent time frame (even after the cancelled Hawaii summit). The millions of deaths calculated by Operation Downfall [the codename for the Allied plan for the invasion of Japan near the end of the Second World War, which was abandoned when Japan surrendered following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki] actually show that only desperation and honour stood between Japan and unconditional
The Decision When Harry Truman learned of the success of the creation of nuclear weapons, he was faced with the most difficult decision in history. The capacity to end the war with Japan was in his hands, but it would involve unleashing the most terrible weapon ever known. Truman ultimately had to decide if the gains from ending the war would outweigh the destruction from ordering the bombs and leading the world into the nuclear age. After very careful deliberation Truman made the right decision on ordering the use of the atomic bomb. The decision prevented millions of American casualties, millions of Japanese casualties, and served as a deterrent to the USSR expansion.