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Why Did We Drop the Bomb?
In 1945 on August 5th at 8 seconds past 8:16AM the atomic bomb, "The Little
Boy", exploded over Hiroshima , Japan . Fifty-one seconds previously, the bomb
was dropped by the B-29 Enola Gay at a height of almost six miles. The explosion
occurred at a height of 1,850 feet and created a huge fireball, which possessed
for a fraction of a second, the temperature of a million degrees. "The Little
Boy" had released the equivalent of 13,500 tons of TNT over the city.
The point of explosion in the air is generally referred to as the epicenter; the
point directly below it, on the ground, as the hypocenter. The intense heat of
this explosion incinerated virtually everything within a radius of some five
hundred yards of the hypocenter. Within a three-hundred-yard radius the heat
waves traveled at a speed of around twelve hundred feet per second. Buildings as
distant as two miles or more were set ablaze. A thick cloud of smoke mushroomed
into the sky to a height of forty thousand feet. The shockwave that followed
immediately after the explosion was felt well over a mile away from the
hypocenter. Radioactivity within a half mile radius was so intense that almost
everyone who managed to survive both the heat and the blast were doomed to
eventual death from the effects of radiation. Death for the lucky ones was
swift, but for many, the pain lingered for minutes or even days. Some, still a
half century later, are suffering and dieing from the painful, cancer causing
effects of radiation sickness (Pacific 237).
Even though pre-bomb population information of Hiroshima is not known for sure
and the fires that ravaged the city destroyed bodies, most experts estimate the
loss of life within that first year after the explosion to be around 140,000.
Due to the nature of radiation and its cancer causing effects, over the last
half century, that figure has increased to about 200,000 lives. These estimates
do not include the deaths of three days later when the atomic bomb "Fat Man" was
dropped on Nagasaki ending an estimated 70,000 more lives (Ohba).
The devastation caused by our dropping the bomb on Japan was horrendous. We
should never have dropped an atomic bomb on Japan let alone two bombs. The
A-bomb should never have been dropped on Japan because: Japan was already
beaten, Japan was trying to surrender, and the A-bomb is inhumane.
Japan was already beaten
Approaching the summer of 1945, Japan, already without a navy to speak of and
its air force in shambles, really could no longer defend itself. United States
bombers could pretty much fly over its mainland carpet bombing any targets it
wished with little loss of planes. The United States Strategic Bombing Survey
issued this statement in July of 1946:
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. (qtd. in Nuclear)
Japan was in no condition to defend itself let alone make continued war upon its
neighbors. Most experts agree that Japan , which was arming its citizens with
bamboo spears, would not be able to withstand continued conventional bombing of
its infrastructure. Why then did we need to drop the atomic bomb?
Japan was trying to surrender
During the later part of the war, Japan was looking to Russia , to help mediate
a surrender agreement with the West. The political structure of Japan at the
time of the war left most of the power with the military. Japan 's cabinet,
through its Foreign Minister Togo , to its ambassador in Russia , clearly stated
it wished to discuss surrender. Having broken the Japanese code, the United
States was able to clearly see Japan 's wish to end the war. Some of the
messages intercepted were:
July 18: "Negotiations…necessary…for soliciting Russia 's good offices in
concluding the war and also in improving the basis for negotiations with England
and America ."
July 22: "Special Envoy Konoye's mission will be in obedience to the Imperial
Will. He will request assistance in bringing about an end to the war through the
good offices of the Soviet government."
July 26: "The aim of the Japanese Government with regard to Prince Konoye's
mission is to enlist the good offices of the Soviet Government in order to end
the war." (qtd. Long)
Japan clearly wanted to end its war with the West. Its navy and air force were
decimated and its citizens and soldiers were hungry. Japan could have inflicted
heavy losses upon an invasion force, but the United States did not need to
invade. The bombing and blockade campaigns were doing the work for the Allies.
Japan was willing to surrender if its Emperor was left alone. The United States
knew this, and Japan knew this, but the United States , when it issued its terms
to Japan made no mention of the Emperor's fate. Japan would not surrender
without knowing its emperor's fate. After the Atomic bomb was dropped, Japan did
surrender, and the Emperor was left alone. Experts state that if the United
States declaration for unconditional surrender had included a clause proclaiming
the fate of the emperor, Japan would have surrendered before the use of the
atomic bomb. Why then did we need to drop the atomic bomb?
The A-bomb is inhumane
The use of atomic weapons on cities full of non-combatants is a horrendous
action. The United States forever showed to the rest of humanity its
overwhelming drive to win at any price. Against international law, it not only
bombed cities with conventional weapons (everyone else in the war forgot this
provision as well), but also demolished two Japanese cities with the
unparalleled power of an atomic weapon.
Death by an atomic weapon is a very messy and painful affair. If you are one of
the lucky ones you are incinerated by the blast or killed from the debris of the
shockwave instantly. Unlucky ones receive burns ranging from first degree (minor
sunburn-like) to fifth degree (destroyed muscle and connective tissue), leaving
them suffering in unbearable pain and leaving little resistance to infection. As
if this were not enough, nuclear weapons have a secondary killer besides the
blast and shockwave. Radiation is released in massive amounts, dancing unseen
among the cellular structure of the body. This damage is quite severe, ranging
from: nausea, diarrhea, hair loss, and infertility to hemorrhage of the mouth
and kidney, destruction of bone marrow, neural disruption, and death. Even years
later, survivors, who believed they beat the odds and survived, came down with
differing cases of cancer, caused by overexposure to radiation. Killing someone
with a gun or bomb is one thing, but making her suffer in pain for days, weeks
or years is unfathomable.
Below is a first hand account of the devastation from Ms. Michiko Yamaoka:
When I was rescued, my hair was burned; my face was inflated like a balloon.
Though my mother did not say, I knew it. I wondered why my shirt had been burnt
and hanging around my arms, I soon realized they were pieces of my skin. It was
hell. I saw people looking for water and they died soon after they drank it. I
saw many people go to the river in search of water and who died. The whole city
was destroyed and burning. (Ohba)
Death and destruction on this scale is unfathomable and irresponsible. Why would
any country develop and use such a means to end a war it had pretty much won
already? President Truman even believed our country would not abide the genocide
of cities, when he spoke to the nation during a radio speech on August 9, 1945 ,
about the Hiroshima bombing:
The world will note that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima , a
military base. That was because we wished in this first attack to avoid, insofar
as possible, the killing of civilians. But that attack is only a warning of
things to come. If Japan does not surrender, bombs will have to be dropped on
her war industries and, unfortunately, thousands of civilian lives will be lost.
I urge Japanese civilians to leave industrial cities immediately, and save
themselves from destruction. (National)
Saying this, he knew we had just bombed a heavily populated city, Hiroshima ,
and had just also bombed Nagasaki , another heavily populated city. Why give
warning when you have already dropped two atomic bombs on as many cities? Was
Truman just speaking to the American citizens and not giving a warning to the
Japanese? Why then did we drop the atomic bomb?
In conclusion, the use of atomic weapons on Japan inflicted a terrible loss of
life without need. Brigadier General Carter Clarke, military intelligence
officer in charge of preparing intercepted Japanese cables, said it best, "…when
we didn't need to do it, and we knew we didn't need to do it, we used them as an
experiment for two atomic bombs." (qtd. Long). The United States did use
Hiroshima and Nagasaki as experiments to see the effects of a nuclear blast upon
a city, and to send the Russian's a message that the United States had, and
would use, nuclear weapons to serve its interests.
In the late twentieth century and creeping into the twenty-first, the United
States of America condemns other countries for the slaying of innocent
civilians. The United States tells Israel to pull out of the West Bank because
of the loss of some civilian lives in their campaign against terror. Why should
they? One look at our history shows that when pushed we have, and will use,
nuclear weapons. We even used them on a country already beaten by our superior
military might. I hope that fifty years without military use of nuclear weapons
is a trend, and that they will not be used ever again. Of course, in 1945, the
United States had only a few bombs. Today, in countries around the world, the
stockpile of nuclear mass destruction totals some 39,000 warheads (Natural).
Hopefully, what happened at Hiroshima and Nagasaki will never happen again.
Works Cited
Long, Doug. Hiroshima : Was it Necessary. Jan. 28 2000
< http://www.doug-long.com/>
Ohba, Mitsuru, John Benson. A-Bomb WWW Museum . 2 July 2000
<http:// www.csi.ad.jp/ABOMB/>
Pacific War Research Society, The Day Man Lost
Tokyo : Kodansha International Ltd. 1972
National Archives and Records Administration. Truman Presidential Museum &
Library.
Apr. 11 2002 http://www.trumanlibrary.org
Natural Resources Defense Council. NRDC. Apr. 17 2002
< http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/default.asp>
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. Extract from U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey Summary
Report.
Apr. 17 2002 <http://www.nuclearfiles.org/docs/1945/45-bomb-survey-x.html >
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