Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Over the last week or so, I have become quite tired of hearing people talk about the horrors wrought by the atomic bomb in Horishima and Nagasaki. The underlying implication seems to be that America made a mistake or that we killed thousands of Japanese needlessly. These people have no historical perspective.
First, only 100,000 Japanese were killed during the bombing. I say only 100,000 because in the battle of Okinawa which concluded a month before the bombs were dropped, 200,000 Japanese and 50,000 Americans lost their lives. And that's one battle! In comparison to the bloodletting that the war in the Pacific had already seen (which includes over 10 million Chinese civilians murdered by Japanese forces), 100,000 lives to end the war completely was a cheap cost to pay.
Second, Allied estimates as to the cost to Allied and Japanese lives through a land invasion are in the millions. The Japanese were a proud people who were willing to fight to the death. The A-Bomb was the only solution because it allowed the Japanese to bow out gracefully in front of this overwhelming display of force.
Those that seek to disparage the brave pilots that dropped those bombs 60 years ago or the military leaders that ordered them dropped are either uninformed or are attempting to intentionally hurt the reputation of the United States. I would like to hear ONE television or radio story giving the actual facts on this story.
For more facts, check out these two articles:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/thomassowell/ts20050809.shtml
http://www.victorhanson.com/articles/hanson080505.html
First, only 100,000 Japanese were killed during the bombing. I say only 100,000 because in the battle of Okinawa which concluded a month before the bombs were dropped, 200,000 Japanese and 50,000 Americans lost their lives. And that's one battle! In comparison to the bloodletting that the war in the Pacific had already seen (which includes over 10 million Chinese civilians murdered by Japanese forces), 100,000 lives to end the war completely was a cheap cost to pay.
Second, Allied estimates as to the cost to Allied and Japanese lives through a land invasion are in the millions. The Japanese were a proud people who were willing to fight to the death. The A-Bomb was the only solution because it allowed the Japanese to bow out gracefully in front of this overwhelming display of force.
Those that seek to disparage the brave pilots that dropped those bombs 60 years ago or the military leaders that ordered them dropped are either uninformed or are attempting to intentionally hurt the reputation of the United States. I would like to hear ONE television or radio story giving the actual facts on this story.
For more facts, check out these two articles:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/thomassowell/ts20050809.shtml
http://www.victorhanson.com/articles/hanson080505.html
posted by John at 9:42 AM
1 Comments:
I have a few points to rebut in your blog. I'm no authority, granted, but I'm doing an essay on it currently and I've done a little research.
First- In the first year alone, 140,000 were killed in Hiroshima and 70,000 in Nagasaki. Since then, there have been innumerable deaths, illnesses, mutated births, etcetera due to long-lasting radiation damage.
Second- the Japanese were willing to fight to the death- for their emperor. They believed he was a god, and would (and did) surrender once his safety was ensured. The Emperor himself was in favour of peace *before* the bombings and was in the process of convincing the military extremists of that.
The Allies could have stated that they would allow the Emperor to retain his position, or could have threatened Russian invasion, before needing to even mention the A-bomb. These together would almost undoubtedly brought surrender; however, they were not mentioned by the Allies.
Third- I do not wish to disparage the brave pilots or American fighters. They were, undoubtedly, amazingly brave- however, they were not informed of what they were actually carrying until they had already embarked on their mission. The public, and even the majority of the military, of the Allies were kept completely in the dark. The generals who ordered the bombs dropped were not aware of the full effect of the bombs, either. As testing had been kept to a minimum to retain secrecy, much of the project was, thought extensively reseached in theory, was untried.
My conclusion, whether or not you value it, is that the blame lies only in the miscommunications of the event. Brave men and women died and are suffering, and that is always a tragedy, but what's done is done and blame fixes nothing.
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