Atomic Question Essay, Research Paper

The Atomic Question On August 6, 1945 the world was changed forever. On that day the United States of America dropped an atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima. Never before has the world seen anything like it. Hiroshima had almost been decimated with an estimated 70-80,000 people were killed. Three days later a second, more powerful bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, killing over 100,000 people. Since Japan was almost defeated and wanting to surrender, many have debated over whether or not the US should have taken such a drastic measure. Was it entirely necessary that we drop such a devastating weapon?

By the end of the war, the U.S. forces had pushed the Japanese far back into their country, leaving them no entry to any resources from the Indies. Japanese cities and factories were being endlessly bombarded by American bombers. Unquestionably Japan was a crushed nation. Again was it necessary that we drop such a devastating weapon?

The decision to use the atomic bomb was justified by the U.S. Who said that the force was crucial to end the war so that many other lives could be saved. However, many have argued since Japan was already on the verge of surrendering ,that the U.S. had only one motive and that was to test this demonstrative weapon on humans. Aside from the ground test in New Mexico no one knew the destruction an atomic bomb was capable of. Still I proclaim was this a necessary act?

The final decision without any warning to drop the bomb came from President Truman ,wanting a quick an effective way of ending the war. However ,was there no other way to end this bloodshed? Perhaps the U.S. could have threatened Japan with a Russian invasion. The Japanese were counting on Russia for support. If the U.S. had convinced Japan that Russia would use force then they may have felt the need to surrender. Another option was to warn Japan, that if they did not surrender they would experience a nuclear holocaust that the world has never seen. Even after the bomb was dropped President Truman was quoted as saying “I know that Japan is a terribly cruel and uncivilized nation in warfare but I can’t bring myself to believe that, because they are beasts, we should ourselves act in the same manner. “For myself, I certainly regret the necessity of wiping out whole populations because of the ‘pigheadedness’ of the leaders of a nation. My object is to save as many American lives as possible but I also have a humane feeling for the women and children in Japan.”

Finally I ask was the atomic bomb necessary? Because, the United States chose not to thoroughly consider all of their options in forcing Japan to surrender and end the war, the decision to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki was volatile and audacious. Had they considered all of the alternatives, and had only used the atomic bomb as a last resort, many lives could have been saved. I feel it was completely hypocritical of the Americans to say that they wanted to save lives, when, instead they annihilated them.