Quote Originally Posted by ermitonto
Firstly, do not confuse race with nation. Perhaps the majority of the nation held that belief, but by no means all of them, and certainly not the entire Japanese race. Some members of that race were ordinary Americans held in internment camps. Races do not hold beliefs. People do.

You definataly did not see that show last night. They considered their Emperor as a God. They ALL would have died for him!

And if the key to breaking Japan's back was by showing them a weapon which could potentially paralyze their entire country, I ask why it was necessary to simply kill huge numbers of Japanese civilians out of the blue, no warning or anything.

Hey Japan, we will be there at 09:00 A.M. pacific time with a very large bomb for ya!


And then to attack MORE civilians before they even had a real chance to surrender, just for the hell of it.

Three more days given waiting for a surrender....didn't happen did it!


How is showing them the power of a nuclear weapon by killing lots of civilians more effective than showing them the power of a nuclear weapon by killing very few civilians? The United States government unnecessarily murdered hundreds of thousands of people as a means to a political end, and people are hesitant to call any government action terrorist.

A few civilian loses would not have meant shit to the Japanese. The Emperor was God and they were all in Samori mode. Hell, look at the kamakazi. Give your life for the Emperor.

The highest ranking officer in the Pacific Theater, General Douglas MacArthur (who was not consulted), called the bombings "completely unnecessary from a military point of view."

MacArthur, like Patton, were old school warriors. They believed that you line up your troops in battle and drove across the country sides. He saw the end of the great battles with the A-bomb.

Eisenhower wrote in his memoirs:
"In 1945 Secretary of War Stimson, visiting my headquarters in Germany, informed me that our government was preparing to drop an atomic bomb on Japan. I was one of those who felt that there were a number of cogent reasons to question the wisdom of such an act? During his recitation of the relevant facts, I had been conscious of a feeling of depression and so I voiced to him my grave misgivings, first on the basis of my belief that Japan was already defeated and that dropping the bomb was completely unnecessary, and secondly because I thought that our country should avoid shocking world opinion by the use of a weapon whose employment, was I thought, no longer mandatory as a measure to save American lives."

Another Military General. Same mindset as MacArthur.

The United States Strategic Bombing Survey, which interviewed hundreds of Japanese civilian and military leaders after the surrender, had this to say:

"Based on a detailed investigation of all the facts, and supported by the testimony of the surviving Japanese leaders involved, it is the Survey's opinion that certainly prior to 31 December 1945, and in all probability prior to 1 November 1945, Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated."
Then why didn't they surrender BEFORE we dropped the bomb. Ample time was given. Why didn't they surrender after Hiroshima? Once again, ample time was given. It took two bombs with great loses in order to break the Emperors will to keep up the fight and go against his military cabinet.