Dropping of Atomic Bombs on Japan - Essay Example

Arguments for and against the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan When the atomic bomb was unleashed by the United States on two cities in Japan, this historically momentous event gave rise to questions regarding how wars will be fought in the future, the viability of the human race as a whole and, as this discussion will address, if the horrific bombing of these two cities was justifiable. Questions regarding the bombings are multifaceted. Was the use of an atomic bomb the only alternative to secure the surrender of Japan or could the U.S. have allowed the one concession Japan requested, to retain its emperor as head of state, and avoided the catastrophic destruction of predominantly civilian inhabited targets? Did President Truman authorize the bombing solely as a means to put an end to a bloody, prolonged conflict and to ultimately save both American and Japanese lives due to an impending invasion on Japan’s homeland or was the decision based on assuring that the Soviet Union would not have a say in post-war Asia is it had in post-war Europe? Finally, even if it is assumed that the first bomb dropped on Hiroshima was necessary and justifiable, was the second bomb on Nagasaki justifiable as well? While the battles for the Philippines and Okinawa were taking place, President Truman, who had become president following the death of Roosevelt, was considering an invasion of the Japanese mainland. By now, the U.S. Navy had ships stationed just off the Japanese coast while its submarines were deployed in the Sea of Japan. Because the battles at Iwo Jima and Okinawa were very fierce, it was estimated that half a million to a million soldiers would be killed if the scheduled November 1, 1945 invasion of Japan occurred (“Decision to Drop”, 2003). In addition, President Truman was contemplating that if the Japanese would quickly surrender prior to the Soviet Union becoming involved in the war, set for August 15, Russia could not demand a part in the post-war settlement. When America unleashed the atomic bomb on Japan, the act infuriated the Soviet Union because it wanted its say just as it had in the carving up of Eastern Europe. This was the beginning of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the U.S. (Lewis, 2002). The war in the Pacific theater culminated in the dropping of two atomic bombs in 1945 on cities in Japan affecting surrender (Goldstein & Dillon, 1981). On the clear morning of August 6, the first atomic bomb, nicknamed Little Boy, was dropped on the city of Hiroshima” (“Atomic Bomb”, 2007). The blast leveled more than half of that city. Seventy thousand of its citizens were instantaneously killed. On August 9, another bomb destroyed Nagasaki (Truman, 1945). In 1945, the U.S. was a country weary of war and its citizens deeply prejudiced against both the Japanese and Germans believing that both types of peoples were inherently evil. Though a ridiculous notion today, it is a somewhat understandable sentiment given the nature of the circumstances at that time and overall acceptance of racism during this period in American history. In July 1945, less than a week prior to the Hiroshima bombing, Truman wrote in his diary describing the Japanese people as “savages, ruthless, merciless, and fanatic” (Dower, 1986: 142). Although Truman shared a similar bias against the Japanese as did the American public, his intent was not to drop such a devastating bomb on civilian areas. “We have discovered the most terrible bomb in the history of the world. I have told the Secretary of War, Mr. [Henry] Stimson, to use it so that military objectives and soldiers and sailors are the target and not women and children. The target will be a purely military one” (Truman, 1945). In addition to whatever personal feelings Truman had regarding the Japanese, he also had political consequences to consider in his decision to utilize the atomic bomb. The American public, according to polls taken at that time, supported by an overwhelmingly margin that the U.S. should only agree to an ‘unconditional surrender’ by Japan. This and the predominant anti-Japanese sentiment among most Americans assured that there would be little political backlash by ordering the bomb to be dropped. Furthermore, Truman would have faced an uphill political battle attempting to explain to voters the reasoning for spending more than two billion dollars for creating a bomb that would not be used particularly if many more American lives were lost had the war continued which, at the time was considered a very real possibility (Loebs, 1995: 8-9). It has been argued that the decision to drop the atomic bomb actually gave little regard to the civilian population, was unnecessary and was based largely upon the Soviets aspirations in the region. Had they had a hand in postwar affairs in Asia, the boundaries of the world would be very different today. The Russian army had entered Korea a few days prior to August 6; the day of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Within a short time, it would have conquered enough Korean territory to be able to claim a negotiating position at the post-war peace talks. Had this scenario occurred, the Soviets had plans in place to occupy both Japan and Korea to the familiar 38th parallel. This would have been an offer the Allies couldn’t refuse because Soviet troops would already be occupying this territory. “The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki served three purposes: it terminated the conflict instantly, saving American lives; it insured a united Japan rather than leaving half of the country to the same fate as North Korea; and perhaps it provided an example which has deterred the use of nuclear arms for 55 years” (Zimmerman, 2000) More than 60 years has elapsed since the atomic bomb was dropped, a long time to second guess and point out the flawed reasoning in that momentous decision. However, many prominent However, HhhAmericans at that time questioned the wisdom of using such a horrific weapon given the circumstances. Top-level World War II military leaders such as Douglas MacArthur, William Halsey, William Leahy and Dwight Eisenhower amongst others, believed the bomb to be totally unnecessary from a military point of view (Takaki, 1995: 3-4, 30-31). The President of the Chiefs of Staff, Navy Admiral Leahy, in his address to the combined U.K. and U.S. Chiefs of Staff expressed his thoughts regarding the use of the atomic bomb. “In being the first to use it, we adopted an ethical standard common to the barbarians of the Dark Ages. I was not taught to make war in that fashion, and wars cannot be won by destroying women and children” (Alperovitz, 2005: 3). Truman chose to drop it and end the war thus, in his estimation, saving many lives, but why did he decide to drop the second bomb on Nagasaki? The decision to bomb Nagasaki was not seemingly made by use of sound military or political reasoning. Japanese Emperor Hirohito was determined to end the war and Japanese military leaders were no less convinced to fight until the death following the Hiroshima bomb. The bombing of Nagasaki proved to be irrelevant. Clearly, Truman was not aware of internal turmoil within Japan as to whether or not to accept surrender terms in August of 1945. However, according to the available information at that time, the second bombing was still unjustifiable. There were no military, diplomatic or moral reasons for its use. Truman did not allow Japan to surrender following the first bomb. The second bomb was dropped immediately after it was available. By his own words, Truman ordered the dropping of “additional bombs as soon as they are made available” (Loebs, 2005). In other words, if the Nagasaki bomb had been ready the day after the Hiroshima bomb, it would have been dropped on August 7. Major General Leslie Groves stressed three reasons for the second bombing. First, he cited that the U.S. did not know if Japan would soon surrender after just one bomb. Second, he argued that “one bomb would be necessary to show the Japanese the power of the bomb, and the second would be needed to show them that we had the capacity to make more than one” (Loebs, 2005). Thirdly, the U.S. had no way of gauging the damage inflicted by the first bomb or the extent of its effect on the leadership of Japan. Those that support the use of the atomic bomb use the following line of reasoning. Japanese forces had demonstrated fanatical defiance in fighting to defend the various Pacific islands and this fanaticism would only increase in intensity if the war moved onto the Japanese mainland thus an invasion would cost hundreds of thousands of American lives. Although fire bombings had all but destroyed the capital city of Tokyo, the Japanese showed no signs of surrender and only an atomic bomb could produce this result. Furthermore, the Soviet Union would still have, in all likelihood, been occupying the northern part of Japan today if not for the use of the bomb at that precise time in history. Those that oppose the use of the atomic bomb argue that Japan was very close to surrendering anyway. Sixty of its larger cities had already been destroyed by the use of conventional bombing runs and the naval blockade had destroyed Japan’s economy. The Soviet Union was busy fighting the Japanese, but these battles were fought in China and were far from a mainland invasion as it had been weakened itself following the war with Germany. If the U.S. would have allowed the Japanese to retain its Emperor, it would have surrendered before the first bomb was dropped, a slight concession given the devastating consequences. A demonstration bombing in a remote area of Japan would have been sufficient to affect surrender without using it on a civilian population. The second bomb was entirely unnecessary even if the first could be justified. Simply put, the Japanese people were pawns used in a political power play, the first of the ‘Cold War’ between the U.S. and Soviet Union. Works Cited Alperovitz, Gar. The Decision to Use the Atomic Bomb. (1st Ed.). New York: Routledge, 2005. “Atomic Bomb – Truman Press Release: August 6, 1945.” Truman Presidential Museum and Library May 20, 2007 “(The) Decision to Drop.” National Atomic Museum. 2003. May 20, 2007. Dower, John W. War Without Mercy. New York: Pantheon Books, 1986. Goldstein, Donald M. & Dillon, Katherine V. At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1981. Lewis, Chris H. “The Impact of the Atomic Bomb on Japan.” (August 2002). May 20, 2007 Loebs, Bruce. “Hiroshima & Nagasaki: One Necessary Evil, One Tragic Mistake.” Commonweal Journal. (August 18, 1995). LookSmart Articles. May 20, 2007 Takaki, Ronald. Hiroshima: Why America Dropped the Atomic Bomb. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1995. Truman, Harry. “Atomic Bomb – Truman Press Release: August 6, 1945.” Truman Presidential Museum and Library. (August 6, 1945). May 20, 2007 Zimmerman, Peter D. “The Atomic Bomb.” St. Petersburg Times. (August 6, 2000). May 20, 2007 Read More