On August 6 th and 9 th of 1945 U. S. bombers dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing destruction and many deaths. These bombs were dropped as World War II was coming to an end. I do not support the United States of Americas decision to drop the a-bomb. I understand as a twenty something college student, it is very easy to be against the atomic bomb but morally even after reading the packet I could not change what I already felt to be true, that the war would have ended without bombing.
The Japanese had already asked the Russians to intercede for them and had indicated they would surrender if allowed to keep their emperor. We proceeded to drop the bomb while calling for unconditional surrender. The only thing stringing the Japanese along was their pride and concern for their god. The only reason we would not allow them to surrender was because it wasn’t unconditional. However, in the end it was the Emperor that led Japan into surrender and was allowed to remain. So basically it was all pointless.
We could have allowed Japan to surrender earlier, keep their emperor, and avoid more killing. Japan was beaten by the summer of 1945. Conventional bombing had reduced many of its cities to rubble (Maddox).
Japan was close to the end and even with the threatening kamikazes I do not believe the number giving estimating how many American lives that would have been lost if the war continued was correct. “We didn’t know beans about the military situation”, (Oppenheimer).
The Essay on The Atomic Bomb Japan Japanese War
... of mentality, how could one argue Japan was leaning towards surrendering? The Japanese wanted Soviet mediation for a settlement ... of Japanese prisoners alone would be reason enough to drop the atomic bomb. Thirty-seven percent of US prisoners in Japan ... war with Japan. America had been in war for four years accumulating 1 million casualties in the process. The United States wanted Japan to surrender ...
And if it was the new troops coming up that we feared then why bomb Hiroshima? A city mainly made up of civilians not soldiers. It was not a military target. Up to two dozen American prisoners of war were killed by the Hiroshima bomb. The Nagasaki bomb killed Dutch prisoners of war and maybe some Americans as well. Over 1, 000 7 Japanese-Americans who were sent to Hiroshima when the war broke out were killed also. I would have an easier time believing the first bomb was necessary to ending the war but not the second bomb.
I could see how the first bomb could bring a quick finish to the fighting, saving many lives, as well as prevent the Russians from joining the Pacific War. The second on Nagasaki however was obviously not. Japan was not allowed enough time to surrender or even take in what had happened. America was not at all trying to save lives. After the Japanese surrounded, the US killed another unnecessarily 15, 000 with conventional bombing. The development of atomic power provided with new means of destruction.
The government hid funds in the budget to create the a-bomb. Now that the U. S. uses this weapon, we will always have to be cautious in the future as a side effect of the decision. A terrible weapon should only be used in extreme situation where there is no other option. We were not in an extreme, no way out position.
We had won the European war, were ahead of the game in men and material and our Russian ally was ready to enter the war against Japan. The only remaining use of the bomb was murderous vengeance, and vengeance is not the foundations upon which we want to build our humanity. We were not defending democracy, or liberty. We were capable of causing just as many casualties as the A-Bomb, and without the adverse effects such as radiation sickness and leukemia.
