Which is the greater evil: Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor, or America's incarceration of Japanese Americans?

Question

Both are horrendous events in evil. Yet the bombing of Pearl Harbor was a military strike, targeting not civilians but enemy militia. The use of surprise and subterfuge has always been an accepted art of war.

The incarceration of Japanese Americans, however, though lesser in scale, may be worse in type. Before you jump on me, yes, more people died in Pearl Harbor. But this incarceration was the act of a nation imprisoning its very own people for no justifiable reason.

Think about which is worse: America's pre-emptive attack on Iraq, or if police suddenly broke into your home tonight and shuttled you away to Alaska simply because you are black or latino or female.

Answer 1

Agree fully with you, the US government has always taken the road to punish the innocent while allowing the guilty to go free. The military attack on Pearl Harbor was necessary because of the US policies towards strangling Japan's lifeline in the south pacific.

Incarcerating American citizens because of their heritage was a crime against humanity. And the largest crime was the confiscation of Japanese-American private property and the giving of said property to greedy investors who bribed the politicans.

And then to make things work out they the gov paid for the stolen property at a rate of around ten cents on the dollar, saying it just wouldn't be fair to take the stolen property back from the politicians.

Answer 2

There is no greater evil than the willfull destruction of human beings.

Lives uprooted can be rebuilt, economic hardship can be lived through, while death is perminant.

You say that this imprisonment was for no justifiable reason, however; you are incorrect. The Japanese-American internment resulted because of an extensive FBI and CIA investigations that said it was very possible that a group of Japanese-Americans were plotting terrorist like attacks on certain manufacturing plants.

While unjust, criminal and deplorable, the internment of our Japanese-American citzens was the result of a terrified populice responding to a real threat from the World War.

Answer 3

You forget that Japan had not declared war on the US but made that strike without warning and while they were negotiating through their ambassador in Washington.

While racial profiling is not the most desirable way to reach a safe security level that was not so much an issue then as it is today. Personally though I would be quite happy to start flying again if the authorities would thoroughly check out EVERY arab looking person who gets on my plane. Currently they are not allowed to do that to protect arabs civil rights. Do YOU feel safe flying?

The more civil rights we demand the less safe we become. In time of war, civil rights are always made secondary to security. It must have been horrible for those Japanese people to be grouped together as if they were all our enemies, and most were not. But not nearly as horrible as being blown to bits by the one or two of them who were loyal to Japan. War is not fun or easy or fair. People die. Innocent people die. So protecting yourself is nothing to be ashamed of.

Answer 4

What was worse Japan's treatment of prisoners of war or America's treatment of the Japanese Americans?

Answer 5

First of all, what does being Black, Latino, or FEMALE, have to do with the war on terrorism? I don't understand. Are you talking about ILLEGAL immagrations when you say Latinos? If anyone is here ILLEGALLY, regardless of what race or gender, than they are not Americans.

Answer 6

This question isnt really a question is it? You obviously have an agenda, and you obviously all ready know hat you want people to say. This is simply your opinion poorly disguised in a question.

Answer 7

it's about cause and effect.... because japan bombed pearl harbor.... incarceration was the effect.... America was not going to get slapped twice... slap me once, shame on you... slap me twice, shame on me....

Answer 8

The incarceration of Japanese American wasn't evil. It was plain stupid.

Answer 9

I think both events are evil. Both involved the killing of people.

Answer 10

Shaolin Samurai? Now there's a contradiction.