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Pros And Cons Of Hiroshima Bombing

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The 1941 Bombing of Hiroshima has sparked global debate since the time of the event. The devastating bombing caused Japan’s unconditional surrender thus bringing World War 2 to a complete end. The dropping of the bomb was an extremely controversial situation as many citizens had different perspectives and opinions when it came to the decision. Two individuals with majorly insightful perspectives were Harry S. Truman, who was in favour of the bombing and the then President of the United States of America and Leo Szilard, who was opposed to the bombing and a German Physicist that created the atomic bomb. Truman, as the new president of the US, learned of the bomb after it had already been constructed. He was not as informed as other citizens …show more content…

Each country had different advantages when trying to achieve this. Russia had a larger population and resources and America had the atomic bomb. When ending the war, America wanted to be both recognised for their work and show Russia that they had more advanced technology. This rivalry sparked in the early 1900’s as Russia was promoting communism and the US did not want their government changing due to other government styles changing throughout the world. A large majority of Americans held a grudge against Russia since, as they wanted to maintain their position as the most knowledgeable and powerful country. Russia had also only recently won The Battle of Stalingrad, a battle between Russia and Germany as Russia fought to get the land back that they had lost. This battle continued on to Russia invading and taking control of Germany in April 1945 which effectively ended the war in Europe. Therefore, when deciding between asking the other allies, including Russia, for help or dropping the atomic bomb, Truman and his close advisors did not want to involve Russia. This is because they were afraid that if Russia got involved the other countries would believe them to be the strongest country that led the war to a close as they had already liberated so many countries in East Europe. Ernest Joseph King, a Commander in Chief and Chief of Naval Operations during World War II said when in a meeting prior to the Potsdam Conference that the soviets were “not indispensable” and “we should not beg them to come in.” Ernest was alike many members of the military that held power when he said that he did not think Russia should be involved and therefore, the people surrounding Truman were cornering him to drop the bomb. Truman doubted the US military could beat Japan if they went head to head on a land battle. Russia had also stated at the Potsdam

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Roosevelt, at Yalta, asked Stalin for support in the war in the pacific, but Truman condemned this decision and decided to carry on his plan on bombing with this new weapons Hiroshima, so he could keep the entire price for his country. There were odds between the two presidents and the Prime Minister of the UK; they didn’t accept the ideas from the others, especially Truman and Stalin. They didn’t stand each other, and the debate held in Potsdam wasn’t heading anywhere, the Cold War was inevitable, but the real game changer was the nuclear weapon. Without these nuclear weapons, the Cold War wouldn’t have been as scary as it was. So I believe that Hiroshima caused the Cold War, but it was not the only issue that contributed to this worldwide

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However, the responsibility for post-war decisions was ultimately given to the United Nations (UN) as a whole. This angered the Soviets, and ultimately increased tension and suspicion between the USA and USSR post WWII. Similarly, the Russian government was overruled by the democratic rules of the UN when the Soviet delegate for the Security Council proposed at a UN meeting in 1946 that atomic weapons be prohibited. At this time President Truman, in opposition of Soviet desires, said it would be foolish for the USA to discard of America’s nuclear weapons until they were assured that the rest of the world could not arm against the US (Truman 804). Stalin was overruled by the UN Security Council, in correspondence with Soviet Foreign Minister V.M. Moltov’s statement the UN’s goal was to dominate the World, especially non-democratic countries (Doc E).

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Dwight. D Eisenhower delivered a speech in 1953 that referred to the ongoing Cold War between the United States and Soviet Union. This situation did not include any general combat or war, instead it was a battle over technology. They had begun to battle over proving who could build a generous amount of atomic and nuclear weapons. When this started, many citizens and people globally were nervous about the outcome of a war this destructive.

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The reason they say that Truman decided to drop the atomic bombs was so that they could try to get ahead of the Soviet Union. Gar Alperovitz is one of the most popular advocators for this reason. He stated that Truman dropped the bombs to demonstrate the power of America, and so that Russia could not enter the war to get new territorial acquisitions. If the Soviet Union was allowed to enter the war, then they could get some of the Japanese assets in China, which would have favored Russia greatly. Alperovitz’s conclusion was that Truman did this “to convince the Russians to accept the American plan for a stable peace”(Harry).

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Tensions were very high between the Soviet Union and America at the end of WWII, and would only continue to escalate. America and the USSR rarely agreed and during WWII they were only able to work together because of the common enemy of Germany. At this point in time the USSR was communist and expanding their hold on land around them. At the Yalta conference in 1945, America and Great Britain agreed to give the Soviet Union control over Poland and Ukraine, and in return the Soviets agreed to use free elections in those countries. The Soviets went back on their word and ruled with communism.

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Truman supplied the people of Berlin with supplies when they were blocked by the Russians through airlifting in staples for the population (“Harry S. Truman”). He also made the final decision to drop the atomic bombs and Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end the war with Japan (Kelly). After World War II had ended, he successfully established a prosperous economy when the wars had ended, and the country was at peace (“Truman: HST Biography”). Additionally, Truman implemented the Truman Doctrine in 1947 to aid Turkey and Greece and promote peace (“Harry S. Truman). Truman sincerely served in his Presidency and his legacy exhibits this through his many great

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Dropping a nuke on a country can cause lots of difficulty. The Americans dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was the most controversial topics in American history. Truman was the active president who made the final decision for this act. Many people believe that Truman made the correct decision while others are in complete disagreement with the decision. President Truman made the correct choice in dropping the atomic bomb because it showed the United States had power, it helped end the war quickly, and saved many lives.

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As Dwight D. Eisenhower remarked to Harry S. Truman in July of 1945 in document C, “it was my personal opinion that no power on earth could keep the Red Army out of the war unless victory came before they could get in” (Doc C). The private conversation between Eisenhower and Truman means that what was said was not censored and was Eisenhower speakly freely to the president, which provides a sense of honesty. Eisenhower expressed his concern of the growing power of the Soviet Union and president Truman also held similar beliefs. In 1941, he is quoted as saying, “ If we see Germany winning, we ought to help Russia and if we see Russia winning we ought to help Germany and that way let them kill as many as many as possible” Truman holded no love for the Russians and the desire to show off to the Soviets played a minor role in the decision to drop the bomb. The main reason for dropping the atomic bomb was to force the surrender of the

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The releasing of the atomic bombs to intimidate the Soviets in the years after World War Two is a valid claim because the war in Japan was virtually over, the United States thought detonating the bombs would make the USSR controllable, and the United States wanted to avoid an alliance with the Soviets. Since the atomic bomb bombardment was very late in the war, it might have seemed unnecessary. As General H. H. Arnold of the American Army once said, “it always appeared to us that, atomic bomb or no atomic bomb, the Japanese were already on the verge of collapse” (Doc B). With the commander of the Army saying that the events at Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not needed, it shows that Truman and the White House coordinated these attacks for more than the obvious reasons. Most likely, it was to send a message to communist Russia and Stalin that the United States is a relentless global power equipped with the best weapons.

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When Japan refused to surrender unconditionally the U.S. decided to nuke them, this was very controversial but looking back the U.S. made the right decision. Although it was seen as immoral, the U.S. made the right decision because if the U.S. didn’t nuke Japan, Russia would of taken over Asia and quite possibly Europe, it was the quickest way to end the war and the one that cost the least American lives, and nukes are weapons of war and Japan was the enemy. If the U.S. didn’t drop the atomic bomb Russia would of taken over Asia and quite possibly Europe. In document E “Mr. Byrnes was much concerned about the spreading of Russian influence in Europe.” The Mr. Byrnes it talks about was then announced Secretary of state 2 weeks after.

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Hydrogen bombs are more than 1000 times more powerful than the very common atomic bomb. The explosion is from nuclear fusion which is when hydrogen nuclei (plural of nucleus) are joined to form helium nuclei, releasing great destructive energy and radioactive fallout. When the nuclei combine there is a split second where there is nothing and then there is the explosion. An atomic bomb is the trigger or the smaller bomb of what sets off the hydrogen bomb. We have to be careful with the hydrogen bomb because, if used, it will cause a major catastrophe far greater than the damage done by the atomic bomb.

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On August 6th of 1945, a revolutionary form of destruction was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. The atomic bomb, nicknamed Little Boy, was the first uranium-fission-based bomb to ever be detonated. At 8:15 AM, America wrought destruction and performed the worst injustice imaginable upon the city, its surroundings, and its people. President at the time, Harry S. Truman, gave consent to the creation and use of such a weapon, and quite frankly, is to blame.

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Second, America dropped the bomb not to win the war and save American lives, but to show its power to the Soviet Union. First, it was not necessary for America to drop the bomb to win the war because the United States had already won a comprehensive victory in the Pacific. The United States had an absolute advantage in the number

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President Harry Truman gave an executive order in 1945 to drop to atomic bombs in popular downtown cities in Japan. With the guidance of many scientists and political leaders President Truman made the extremely tough decision to drop the bombs. After listening to arguments from both sides President Truman came to the conclusion that dropping bombs would be the best thing to do for this war. It would also show that the United States had an extreme military power. Many American politicians were for the idea of dropping the bomb, because they believed that it was the only way to end the war and get Japan to surrender.

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"But it is hard to imagine how the U.S. government could have prevented a Communist victory short of getting involved in a massive military intervention, which would have been risky, unpopular, and expensive"(Tindall 964). "The discovery of the Soviet bomb in 1949 triggered an intense reappraisal of the strategic balance of power in the world, causing Truman in 1950 to order the construction of a hydrogen bomb, a weapon far more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, lest the Soviets make one first"(Tindall 964). The onset of the cold war the ideology drove more of the Soviet behavior. "American 's traditional commitment to democtatic capitalism, political self determination, and religious freedom conflicted with the Soviet Union 's preference for spheres of influence on its periphery, totalitarianism at home, and state mandated atheism"(Tindall 970). Kennan stressed that U.S. needed to be responses to the Soviet adventurism.

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