More people died during the bombings than they would have if America invaded Japan. In Hiroshima and Nagasaki almost two-hundred thousand people were injured or killed. There are still people suffering the effects of the atomic bombs today. Many people that lived near the impact sites and survived have been entered into a radiation study.
The estimated amount of people that died in the bombing of HIroshima is 140,000 people. In August 1941 president Truman dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima, Japan. Some say that the atomic bomb was the right thing to do and others say it is not. The atomic bomb was wrong because there were alternatives, the bomb was only made for defense, and many people were killed for unnecessary reasons.
August 15 - The news has come in that Japan has officially signed an act of unconditional surrender, bringing the six-year war to an end and bringing the impending Armageddon to a halt. While many thought that Japan would hold out until the bitter end, but with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki radically transformed the playing field. The Japanese could not withstand their stance of defiance, when, on August 6th, the first atomic bomb fell upon Hiroshima. Three days later, another bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.
My strongest argument AGAINST using the atomic bomb is that it will kill thousands of innocent people. The bomb that was dropped over Hiroshima instantly killed about 80,000 civilians. Those who survived were seriously injured with burns, and more people would also die from the radiation. This was talked about on page 188, “...instantly killed almost 80,000 civilians. The nuclear blast left many more people maimed or hideously burned, while others fell victim to a new, more gradual killer – radiation poisoning.”
American military leaders from all branches of the armed forces some prior to August 1945, some in retrospect, strongly demurred from the decision to use the bombs for moral reasons. Japan was already defeated and in peace negotiations with Russia; surrender was imminent. Moreover, Russia was willing to enter the war against Japan if necessary. Bombing dense human settlements was pretty much barbarous, immoral and would shock world opinion. Some argue a demonstration bombing away from residential areas could be used instead to force immediate surrender.
On August sixth, 1945 president Truman made the critical decision to drop an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, and three days later would also decide to drop a nuke on Hiroshima effectively forcing japan to surrender. Truman's decision was justified at the time because, it was seen as the best option at the time, the Japanese were extremely against surrendering, and it in turn prevented the death of millions. The decision to drop the nuclear bomb was the best option at the time because it would force Japan to surrender the quickest and with the least casualties. On April first, 1945 the U.S. launched the attack on Okinawa, which is an island off of Japan, the main goal was to capture the airbase on the island because of its proximity to Japan.
In 1939, the world’s most scientific community found out physicists from Germany learned how to split the uranium atom. Albert Einstein and Enrico Fermi fled from the Nazis and Italy are now living in the United States. They both agreed to inform the president of the dangers of atomic production, and Roosevelt agreed to proceed slowly to make an atom bomb. Late 1941, America received the code name the “Manhattan Project” for the designing of the atom bomb. The atom bomb cost $5 Billion to make during the WWII era.
On August 6, 1945, the united states dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, immediately killing 80,000 people. Three days later another one was dropped on Nagasaki. Some historians say the bomb was not needed because according to the author “japan was ready to call it quits anyway. More than 60 of its cities had been destroyed by conventional bombing, the home islands were being blocked by the american navy, and the soviet union entered the war by attacking japanese troops in manchuria” (Dietrich 1).
On August 6th, 1945, the U.S. B-29 aircraft the “Enola Gay” dropped the nuclear bomb “Little Boy” on Hiroshima Japan. During WWII, the Japanese attacked one of our bases in Hawaii called Pearl Harbor. They destroyed around 20 U.S. ships, and 300 planes. They killed around 2,400 soldiers, sailors, and civilians. Americans knew the Japanese were planning some kind of attack on the US, but they never expected it to be at Pearl Harbor.
On August 6, 1945 the world’s first atomic bomb was dropped over the Japanese city of Hiroshima by an American B-29 bomber. This bomb as well as the second atomic bomb dropped on August 9, 1945 over the Japanese city of Nagasaki killed a combined 150,000 people on impact. Although these bombs killed an immense number of people, it was still better than continuing the war and allowing another country to attempt an atomic bombing on the US. Although there were many reasons to drop the atomic bomb, the most influential were that Japan was not going to surrender and there were no strong alternatives that would have had the same final effect on the war. America’s atomic bombing of Japan was the best action available because there were no strong
The atomic bomb should be supported by the U.S. because of the following reason. Many people supported the bombing because the Japanese were given a fair warning. The supporters argument states, “Additionally, bomb supporters argue that Japanese civilians were warned in advance through millions of leaflets dropped on Japanese cities by U.S. warplanes. In the months preceding the atomic bombings, some 63 million leaflets were dropped on 35 cities target for destruction by U.S. air forces. The Japanese people generally regarded the information on these leaflets as truthful, but anyone caught in possession of one was subject to arrest by the government.
In an article published by The Atlantic Karl L. Compton gives his take on the dropping of two nuclear warheads on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. While reflecting he comes to the conclusion that dropping the bombs was indeed the appropriate. I agree fully that this was the right course of action, as the Japanese had proven up to this point that they weren’t willing to back down. An alternative attack wouldn’t have been as potent, and dropping the nukes prevented greater casualty numbers. Keep in mind this wasn’t just a hasty decision made by our world leaders “Then, shortly before Hiroshima, I became attached to General MacArthur in Manila, and lived for two months with his staff.
Every year in August the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) remains one of the most arguable events in the modern history. Nevertheless it is actively debated topic whether the bombings were necessary and what effect they had on bringing the war in the Pacific Theatre to an efficient end. Furthermore, what the other options were available to the United States. These very same questions were also argumentative at the time, as the American government struggled with how to use a incredibly powerful new weaponry and what the long-term impact of atomic weaponry might be, not just on the Japanese, but on domestic politics, America’s international relations, and the budding Cold War with the Soviet Union.
There is always a debate about if the bomb should have been dropped. In my opinion, we should have dropped the bomb on Japan. There are no other alternatives to dropping the bomb. By dropping the bomb the war would have ended early, and a psychological shock from the atomic bomb. World War II has been going on for awhile, this would be a way to end the war immediately.
The bomb detonated on Hiroshima was named “Little Boy” due to its slim design while the bomb dropped on Nagasaki was called “Fat Man” due to its bulbous shape. Following the atomic bombings, United States leaders justified their attacks by stating that they were necessary to accelerate Japan’s WWII surrender. They elaborated that although the bombings lead to a massive death toll within the Japanese population, it was nothing compared to the number of lives that would have been lost had WWII persisted (Tomonaga 491, 2019). The legacy of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings is that they exposed the true horrors and destructive capacity of nuclear weapons. In Japan’s case, the risks imposed by nuclear use can be specifically noticed by investigating the massive death toll, leukemia, and PTSD cases that arose out of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings.