America's Justification for the Use of the Atomic Bomb Essay

The United States was justified in dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima due to the unwarned attack on civilians and docked naval ships at Pearl Harbor by the Japanese. For example, the bomb displayed the power the U.S wielded when they dropped it on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It showed other countries that the United States had weapons, and would use them. This

While this is true, it becomes apparent that every option had its flaws and none seemed as immediate of a solution as dropping single highly destructive bombs on what Stimson (the secretary of war) named as “cities in Japan devoted exclusively to production” (p.287). The first alternative mentioned in the RTAP (page 273) was “continue and intensify the bombing and naval blockade of Japan”. The second option mentioned on the same page was to “wait for the Soviet Union to enter the war with Japan by attacking Manchuria” and the third option mentioned was to “allow the Japanese to retain their emperor with his power reduced to the status of a constitutional monarch”. Each option was unique in its requirements of effect, strategic planning, and man power. However, they all shared the distinct quality of baring absolutely no guarantee of Japanese surrender.

(Document F)” General Marshall truly believed if the bomb wasn’t dropped it would have cost many lives and Truman agreed with him and made the decision to drop them. A soldier from World War II stated, “... We cried with relief and joy. We were going to live. We were going to grow up to adulthood after all (Document C).” United States soldiers were relieved to hear the news of the bombs being dropped and soon to come after the Japanese surrender because they didn’t give up that easily. They had too much pride it was a huge part of their culture. They’d fight until every man, woman and child are gone before surrendering. Therefore, United States citizens and soldiers feared the worst before the bombs were dropped. When they heard the news of Japan’s surrender the fear disappeared because they were going to live to see another

The two atomics bombings dropping on Japan are forever remembered today as a changing moment in history. The US dropped the atomic bomb called “Little Boy” on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. Only three days later on August 9th, 1945, the second atomic bomb called “Fat Man” was dropped on Nagasaki. This has been the only time that nuclear weapons have been used in war. These bombs have been questioned through history if it was moral or immoral correct. However, the bombs were definitely a moral decision, which helped the country immeasurably. The atomic bombing of Japan was a military success, and a moral decision because it was less harmful than the fire bombings and it helped the country immeasurably.

America's decision to drop two nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had a profound effect on millions of lives of both Americans and the Japanese. Not only did it carry a significant amount of casualties but many American lives were spared. By entering into WWII, there were so many innocent lives that were lost including millions of civilians so when this monstrous war was coming to an end in 1945, I believe that President Harry S. Truman acted on a prompt decision in order to spare many more American lives. As stated in U.S. History in Context, Historians writing closer to 1945 tended to accept President Harry S Truman’s interpretation of events, that an invasion of Japan, which had been badly wounded but was hardly defeated in August 1945, would have cost over one million American lives and many more Japanese (History in dispute, 2000). The same article advises that the atomic bomb, a new weapon developed in such secrecy that Truman, who succeeded to the office on President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s death in April, knew

A retired Major, Richard Gordon, was a POW in Japan and said, ?The dropping of the bomb saved the lives of all of us being held in Japan. There wasn?t one prisoner who wasn?t told they were dead if the Americans invaded Japan. We were looking forward to an invasion, but we knew we might not be around to see it.? Another survivor of the Bataan Death March, Grayford C. Payne, was quoted as saying, ?I had not been a prisoner for fifteen minutes before they bayoneted a fifteen-year-old Filipino kid right next to me.? A Japanese directive describes how the prisoners were to be killed: ?mass bombing, or poisonous smoke, poisons, decapitation?. In any case, it is the aim not to allow the escape of a single one, to annihilate them all, and not to leave any traces.? An invasion was the most favored alternative of the allies to force a Japanese surrender, if the bomb was not used. The other alternatives were naval blockades, modification of unconditional surrender terms, conventional bombing, and waiting a little longer to see if the Soviets would enter into the war. The number of Americans and Japanese who would have died if such invasions had occurred would have been astronomically higher than the number who died at Hiroshima. Pentagon planners projected 132,000 American casualties for an invasion of Kyushu, and 90,000 or so for Honshu. Using Okinawa as a model, there would be one American casualty for every four Japanese casualties, and Japan?s

In addition: “The Japanese army was already training its civilians to fight with sharpened bamboo poles…[By] using sharpened pikes the Japanese could easily prevent a military government from being effective in those towns which the U.S. captured.” The real predicament involving the invasion of Japan was the fierce resistance expected during and after the assault.

“Truman stated that his decision to drop the bomb was purely military. Truman believed that the bombs saved Japanese lives as well. Prolonging the war was not an option for the President,” (ushistory.org 1). President Truman and the United States government made a fair decision by dropping the atomic bomb on the Japanese citizens in Hiroshima and Nagasaki during 1945. The bomb allowed the United States to appear more powerful and led to them influencing the rest of the world. The dropping of the atomic bomb was also a just response to the previous atrocities committed by Japan to other countries including the United States. In the long run, the bomb saved more lives that would have been lost in the war, since the bombs caused the

On the 6th and 9th of August, 1945, the United States of America dropped the Atomic Bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The use of these bombs brought a quick end to World War 2, yet caused extensive damage to the two Japanese cities. There have often been disputes as to whether the USA was justified in the dropping of the atomic bombs because of the damage they caused, not only to the cities, but to the people of Japan as well. Many people believe that the USA should not have dropped the bombs because of the damage they caused, and they also claim that Japan was already defeated. However, Japan did not surrender, and prolonging the war was not an option for America, as it believed it would cause even more casualties, not only to American troops, but to Japan as well. Thus the USA was justified in dropping the bombs on Japan.

The atomic bombs were justified and properly used because of the japanese’s hardcore dedication to this war. They were willing to stop at nothing to complete their goal of winning the war. The attack on Pearl Harbor caused many Americans To dislike the Japanese people as a whole, this Led Americans to believe that the Japanese people as a whole were dangerous. In addition to the speculations of the American people, speculations about the Japanese military begin to grow. They learned that the Japanese military was a very powerful force, their Army was estimated to have over 5 million men.

On the day of the attack, Japan succeeded with their plan of “surprise.” The United States had “ no defenses and many of their guns were not loaded” (Keegan

The Atomic Bomb made a very serious statement at a time when the world was in disarray (“Manhattan”). World War II was one of the most destructive times in history causing over 50 million deaths and leaving behind mental and physical casualties of war. (“World War II”) It started in September, 1939 when Germany invaded Poland and continued on a destructive path through Europe. Britain and France declared war on Germany. Two years prior in 1937, the Sino Japanese War was in full swing. Japan wanted to dominate China from a political and military standpoint and benefit from China’s many assets (“Sino”). United States, Britain and France aided China with financial aid through war supply contracts, which

The atomic bomb, used on Japan, was a scientific breakthrough that changed the course of history. The creation of the atomic bomb in World War 2 was the first ever nuclear weapon. The success of the Trinity Test, the “practice” detonation of the bomb, on July 16, 1945 caused Harry S. Truman to decide that the U.S. would use an atomic bomb on Japan. The actual dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki led to the surrender of Japan in World War 2. The dropping of the bombs on Japan was justified because it aided in ending the war, saved lives, and helped The United States get revenge. The Manhattan Project was necessary and it was an essential factor that assisted in the end of the war.

How can anyone be certain that Japan would have continued to fight? It is possible that they were preparing for surrender, no one can say for certain exactly what would have happened but by examining evidence of Japanese culture and warfare it is obvious that would not have been the case. At the time of WWII systematic and organized education made efficient "brainwashing" possible. In public schools, students were taught to die for the emperor. By late 1944, a slogan of Jusshi Reisho meaning, "Sacrifice life," was taught. In addition to civilian’s dedication to their country, there was a group of military pilots called the Kamikaze. Kamikaze were “suicide” pilots. They would load up an airplane and try to nose dive it into an enemy target. Think about what must be on that pilot’s mind. Imagine the undying love for his country. He would fight to the bitter end for his emperor. The most frightening part of this is that the entire Japanese military thought this way. The fact that the enemy is willing to die so long as you die with him is not something

In the months leading up to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, World War II had