Why Were 2 Nuclear Bombs Used in WWII?
This past August 9th, 2016, was the 71st anniversary of the WWII nuclear bombing in Nagasaki, Japan, three days after the more well known Hiroshima bombing.
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The second bomb doesn't get as much attention, since it's the second instance. The first time it happened is what stays most in our minds, as per the anchoring or focusing effect cognitive bias. Yet, there have only ever been two nuclear bombs used against people, ever.
Nuclear bombs are horrible destructive devices that should never have existed.
This begs the question, why was Nagasaki bombed in the first place, given one was already used to demonstrate the power the US had?
Nagasaki was a backup choice, after cloud cover diverted the plane from bombing Kokura. But that doesn't explain why it was used at all.
Excuse:
It was necessary to prove the US had more bombs ready, or could create more if required.
BS Called:
It's an assumption to think the Japanese wouldn't consider the US capable of having already, or couldn't in the future, produce more nuclear bombs.
Fat Man plutonium bomb used on Nagasaki
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Excuse:
The Japanese didn't surrender quickly enough.
BS Called:
They just go bombed, were assessing how bad it was, and maybe the above is true that they were thinking over if the US could do it to them more. But maybe 3 days isn't long enough? Is one day long enough? How about 0 days to make a decision to bomb the Japanese a second time?
According to Leslie R. Groves in Now it Can be Told, the story of the Manhattan project, admits he told Brigadier General Thomas Farrell that the war is over "after we drop two bombs on Japan," in response to Farrell who initially said "the war is over". Some people already had made up their minds that they wanted to attack Japan again. Would Japan surrendering immediately have made a difference?
The army has long said both bombings helped to save American and Japanese lives, in the long run, as opposed to a longer running war.
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Excuse:
The nuclear bombs helped saved American and Japanese lives, it was an act of mercy.
BS Called:
Vaporizing 250,000 civilians was a act of mercy... right. And 9/11 was a blessing. Orwellian anyone? Look at how the USA took that day with over 3,000 dead. There is a hug difference in levels of destruction, yet people want to brush it aside like nothing. And what's worse, is some people, like politicians, talk about using nuclear bombs like nothing, when they are the most horrible destructive weapon humans have created.
But the truth has since come out from top officials during WWII.
"Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped"
- U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey Report, July 1946
At the time of WWII, General Dwight D. Eisenhower later recounted his thoughts in a piece by Newsweek called "Ike on Ike", in 1963:
"The Japanese were ready to surrender and it wasn’t necessary to hit them with that awful thing."
Admiral Leahy, the highest ranking military official from 1942 to 1949, said in I Was There / William D. Leahy:
"It is my opinion that the use of this barbarous weapon at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated and ready to surrender because of the effective sea blockade and the successful bombing with conventional weapons."
Another famous military man, General Douglas MacArthur agreed saying he said "no military justification for the dropping of the bomb."
There are more people who agree that the bombings didn't need to take place, certainly not two.
So why were cities of unarmed nonmilitary populations chosen as the targets?
The military didn't think targeting military or non lethal areas for atomic demonstration would suffice to convince the Japanese to surrender.
Historians agree, like Doug Long, who quotes J. Samuel Walker's book "The Decision to Use the Bomb: A Historiographical Update":
"The consensus among scholars is that the bomb was not needed to avoid an invasion of Japan and to end the war within a relatively short time. It is clear that alternatives to the bomb existed and that Truman and his advisors knew it."
The reason the bombs were dropped can vary according to who answers. But certain members of the government, military, engineers and scientists involved, wanted it to be used, and not just once. They wanted a weapon to quell any enemy at any time.
According to one book, Einstein says in defense of many scientists and military officers against the bombings:
“A great majority of scientists were opposed to the sudden employment of the atom bomb.” In Einstein’s judgment, the dropping of the bomb was a political – diplomatic decision rather than a military or scientific decision. There was no real military need for it. It was all about politics and power, the lifeblood of civilization it seems...
Either way, many people saw it was not needed, but it was used anyways, because the people in power like power and like to show their power. They wanted to flex it and show the world their big muscles.
And we saw how many nuclear bombs have been built in the world since then. The insanity of humanity, collecting radioactive material from all over the world and concentrating into an area making it an anti-life substance. Now we have enough muscle power to rip ourselves apart. Fun isn't it? Wise minds? I think not.
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We currently have over 15,000 nuclear bombs on this planet from 9 countries alone. And 93% of them come from the USA and Russia. All thanks to the fear and paranoia of the Cold War that came after WWII.
In light of the drive for using nuclear bombs, it might be more pertinent to ask why they stopped using the bombs after in Japan, or in the rest of the world. Perhaps they realized themselves, or they had to pay attention to the public outcry in the world, the horrors of the bombing destruction.
Some good news or a positive light to end it with, is how Nagasaki has rebuilt and looks now. It is a thriving city with a vibrant tourist economy.
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Thank you for your time and attention! I appreciate the knowledge reaching more people. Take care. Peace.
References:
- The Real Reason America Used Nuclear Weapons Against Japan. It Was Not To End the War Or Save Lives.
- Why Nagasaki?
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@krnel
2016-12-07, 7:22am
I feel like you overlook the fact that we (the US) were already concerned about a continuation of the war once Japan was vanquished - a war against our tentative ally the Russians. Not discussing the dynamics at that time leads to a common pitfall of historical observation, assuming greater omnipotence amongst actors about what the future held.
This talks a bit more about the issue.
The atomic bombs served two purposes:
The second goal obviously failed as Korea was split and China still has strong Russian ties. The first goal arguably failed as the use of the atomic bomb did more to make Russia angry than anything else. It is a tragedy that Japanese civilians were the victims of the weapon demonstration. The real world equivalent of Alderaan, if you will. Hmm... brings up some interesting things to think about. The Third Reich has been the goto comparison of the Empire, but there are a lot of similarities to the United States as well...
The only reason Japan surrendered was because Russia was freed up from its European conflicts and was mobilizing against Japan in the East. If the firebombing of Tokyo wasn't enough to cause a surrender out of the government's pity for its civilian population's plight, why would the nukes do that? And japan was already making overtures for peace before the nukes. It was mass murder and entirely inexcusable.
The first bomb was very questionable. Pretty much all of the Axis had surrendered, by then much of Japan's overseas territories were recaptured and they were essentially isolated. Sure, Japan rejected the Potsdam Declaration, but diplomacy is not for the impatient. There's very little doubt that Japan would have surrendered, it was just a matter of when.
The second bomb, to me, is a clear war crime. As a single act of unnecessary violence, it eclipses anything the Nazis ever did. If the Nazis had deployed an attack this heinous, be rest assured everyone involved in the project would have been sentenced to death at Nuremberg. That's how it has always been throughout history - victor's justice. There's no justification for this terrible act of terror against innocent civilians.
Of course, the real reason was to chest thump to the world that the United States was the next great superpower, eclipsing the United Kingdom.
Curiously, they didn't use the atomic bomb on Germany, which had started the whole mess in the first place. Japanese people/race was considered a much more satisfying target.
Ah, that's because Germany surrendered months before the bombs were ready. At the time, Japan was the only target.
I visited Nagasaki and his a beautiful town, also I visited the museum in the honor of the victims. Is very important to remember the horror of the war and remember the history to not make the same mistake again.
Monstrous and unforgivable. The circumstances for the use of weapons are engineered by the same sick psychopaths that then come up with the disgusting justifications for using them. Utterly despicable. Perhaps, in order to 'save' humanity, we should round up all those people exhibiting psychopathy and instead of letting them control everything, lock them up? I'd prefer that to vapourizing innocent people in the name of expediency calculated by monsters.
I mentioned this in one of my old posts two about when I visited the Hiroshima Museum.
Great article @krnel the display of advanced weapons has always been a sovereign plaything. Look at the recent cloaking device used by the Russian fighters as they swooped by the US naval vessels without detection. And now the Asthma Lighting Storms.
They do like to strut their stuff, too bad it ain't intelligence, benevolence or even an iota of common sense.
Nice work - Steemit needs more content like this!
Thanks. I try to bring some interesting topics to learn about our reality's nasty past and current and immoralities, as well as potential dangers going forward and solutions to better our individual and collective progress. :)
The nuclear bomb was really cruel.
Many Japanese were sacrificed.
That is a sad fact.
But if the bomb had not been dropped,
In Korea and China much more people would have been brutally killed.
So we should avoid the war.
@krnel, thanks for ur great post. I just want to point out that many companies make profits from nuclear bombs-making 'ingredients'...
Here is a list of Uranium Stocks...
Today is nearly an 'all-green day' for uranium-related companies... And nope, I am not encouraging anyone to buy any of these stocks... Don't wish these profiteers profit from us to kill us...
=(
Thanks for the additional info, appreciated :)
It is my hope that such an act does not happen again and we find away to lasting peace, cooperation and prosperity.
This is a hard subject for me because I have relatives on both sides of the issue, being Japanese, Scottish and part American Indian. I have heard the Kyoto was at one point going to be a target, a city with very old historic temples. My mother, who is Japanese, claims that they did surrender after the first bomb however, the statement was mistranslated.
Thank you for the post @krnel your writing is always a pleasure to read.