2007-03-26 01:15:46 · 20 answers · asked by blaredangell 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Military
It wasn't wrong. The proposed Operation Olympic would have caused far more death and destruction.
Casualties on the US side had been consevatively estimated at 300,000.
Casualties on the Japanese side had been estimated at over a million. Remember, the Japanese had every intention of fighting to the last man in a conventional battle.
So instead Truman opted to drop nuclear bombs which in the end - saved lives.
A sad Irony but the greatest climax to the last stages of WW2.
2007-03-26 01:21:52 · answer #1 · answered by Blitzhund 4 · 6⤊ 0⤋
The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was not at all wrong. Although the magnitude was not realised prior to the release of the bombs. America has since vowed never to use such measures again. It was the right thing to do especially for South East Asia.
2007-03-26 09:11:15 · answer #2 · answered by marco 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The Japanese were at that time within a few weeks of creating their own bomb, the Nazis too. It was a showcase. It worked but the war was already over. In war nothing and everything is wrong. Anyway, people here are still suffering genetic mutations, and will do for several generations. These things cannot be judged simply right or wrong. Killing hundreds of thousands of people in an instant flash of light was bad. But wrong? No, they had it coming. Another month and they would have done the same to Europe or America.
2007-03-26 08:28:23 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
Who says it was wrong? History has proven it to be the only course of action left short of staging a full-scale invastion of the Japanese mainland, which would have resulted in at least half a million casualties and prolonged the war by as much as another year.
Truman had a hell of a choice to make, and I think he made the right one. Besides, it's kinda stupid to sit back now some 50+ years later and second-guess what was done during a time of world war. No amount of second-guessing will change what happened.
2007-03-26 11:17:25 · answer #4 · answered by Team Chief 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It wasn't wrong from our perspective as americans because it shortened the war in the pacific and insured that the US wouldn't have to invade Japan's heavily fortified main Island. So hundreds of thousands of American and Japanese lives were saved. In addition Japan could have surrendered after only one atomic bomb was dropped however there pride and determination prevented them from doing so.
In addition it was better that we unleashed the A-Bomb before the Soviet Union so the world could see the horrors of Nuclear war. Some one had to be the first to use the weapon and it was best theat it was us.
2007-03-26 09:26:28 · answer #5 · answered by Tha Truth 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It all depends on your point of view,. however,. .the facts are this...
Had we not dropped the bombs,... the only step left would have been full scale invasion...
The plans had been drawn up, and after the 5th day,. there were no orders for the 1st Marine Division,.. under the assumption they would have taken 100% casualties by this point. Generous estimates put casuaties on both sides as well as civilian losses in the millions...
another thing to consider,... the toyko bombings killed more than the atomic bomb, due to the fires that started burning across the entire area
so its still all up to ones own opinions and perspective.. its always easier to judge someone for making a decision, than it is to sit and have to make a decision like that yourself...
2007-03-26 08:30:36 · answer #6 · answered by Z 3 · 7⤊ 0⤋
No, it wasn't. The Japanese population believed that their Emperor was a god. They believed that to die for the Emperor was a one way ticket to heaven. The Japanese propagandists told the population about how the Americans would murder all the men and then rape and murder all the women. You can see their reactions in the invasion of Okinawa were the civilians were committing mass suicide or becoming suicide bombers against the Americans. These islands were small in comparison to the Japanese mainland in terms of population. Truman decided to use the bomb against them. Even with the bomb on Hiroshima, ALL of the Emperor's staff still wanted to fight. After the 2nd bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, they still wanted to fight. The Emperor overrided their say and declared surrender to the USA.
2007-03-26 08:23:48 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 0⤋
Too bad we only had two bombs ready. I guess those that feel some type of sympathy for these slants tend to forget about the Death Marches, biological experiments on POW's, the Rape of Nanking and the list continues. It's a shame they surrendered, we could have gotten to use a few more bombs on these scum.
2007-03-26 16:04:01 · answer #8 · answered by preacher55 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Actually, it wasn't wrong. It saved more lives than it killed. Had the US not dropped those bombs, the war would have gone to the next step which would be firebombings and land invasion of Japan. Millions of people would have died.
2007-03-26 08:22:45 · answer #9 · answered by ? 6 · 6⤊ 0⤋
It wasn't. It was a simple calculation based on estimates. How many will die if we drop vs how many will die if we don't drop. Ultimately, it saved a lot of American and some Japanese lives because it ended the war.
2007-03-26 09:50:32 · answer #10 · answered by goose1077 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋