The United States entered World War Two on December 7th, 1941 when the Japanese attacked an Air-Force base in Hawaii called Pearl Harbour. Until the end of the war on September 2nd, 1945 the United States funneled billions of dollars into the war effort and lost hundreds of thousands of young men. However, when you ask a person what they would change about America’s involvement in World War Two most people would say that they would have not dropped the atomic bombs on Japan. This is because most people see the killing of the Japanese citizens as a crime of war. There are many arguments against dropping the bomb on Japan, but these solutions would have cost too much money, too many men, and would have taken way too long. In reality the United
It’s argued that the dropping of the bombs heightened the Cold war and forced it to progress at a much faster rate and with more aggression. The critics say that the USSR might have cooperated and worked together with the United States instead of competition. This thinking, however, is flawed. The Soviet Union would have carried on the same way and have the same leaders. The thinking of the soviets would not have changed and as a result the USSR would have never worked with the United States. The Cold War forced many people to live in constant fear of a nuclear war, but it also brought about many new technological inventions and the space race. Competition between the two countries forced the creation of technology faster than cooperation ever would have. The constant need of one nation to be better pushed both countries forward to the breaking point, and America
Hiroshima had 135,000 casualties and Nagasaki had 64,000 casualties. This total even though still absurd, was a sacrifice that President Truman found to be acceptable. It was better that those 200,000 people die rather than millions
In order to end the war as quickly as possible, retaliate against the Japanese, justify the cost of the Manhattan Project, and save countless lives, the United States needed to drop the Atomic Bombs. There were other ways of ending the war and the dropping of the atomic bombs may not have been the most ethical way of doing it, but in the end it was the most effective way to stop the fighting. Any other way and the United States would have had to spend resources that we didn’t have, straining our economy even more and risk putting our nation into chaos for
On August 6, 1945, the first bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. Three days later on August 9, the second bomb hit Nagasaki. Whether the United States made a moral and ethical decision is still an ongoing debate. President Truman was faced with a difficult choice. The U.S. chose to adopt a stance that seemed to limit the amount of casualties in the war, by significantly shortening it with the use of atomic weapons. It was certainly a reasonable view for the USA to take, since they had suffered the loss of more than thousands of lives, both military and civilian. To the top rank of the US military the death toll was worth it to prevent the “many thousands of American troops that would have been killed in invading Japan.” This was a grave
On August 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped the world’s first atomic bomb over Hiroshima. Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. On August 15th, the Japan announced unconditional surrender in World War II. To this day historians still discuss why the U.S. decided to use the atomic bombs. Orthodox historians argue that the decision to drop the bombs was a military one designed purely to defeat the Japanese. Revisionist historians argue that the bombs were not needed to defeat Japan; the bombs were meant to shape the peace by intimidating the Soviets. After analyzing the documents in The Manhattan Project it has become clear that the U.S. used the bombs during WWII not only to defeat the Japanese, but also to intimidate the Soviet Union
The creation of the hydrogen bomb, moreover the summoning of an arms race, spawned worldwide desire for nuclear arms, and worldwide fear for those who had them; The effects of such can be seen in the economic and diplomatic benefits exhibited by those with enough stamina and vigilance to endure its costs, and in the extreme measures taken by countries, nominally the United States, to respond to the security threat posed when other countries owned the bomb. Furthermore: For those whose economy could afford it, nominally the U.S., USSR and India, economic and diplomatic benefits followed its creation; For the U.S., following the creation of the bomb by enemies were extreme defense tactics; For all the benefits and costs compelled a worldwide
Decisions are the hardest thing to do, especially considering how Harry Truman decided to drop the US Atomic bombs onto Okinawa and Iwo Jima. The role to end the war with Japan was in his hands, but it would require releasing the most horrendous weapon ever known. Although, there was some controversy over Truman’s decision. Some people say that it was unnecessary to use the Atomic bombs, such as the Federal Council of Churches and the Christian Faith. They stated that: “As American Christians, we are deeply penitent for the irresponsible use already made of the atomic bomb. We are agreed that, whatever be one’s judgment of the war in principle, the surprise bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are morally indefensible. ("8 Primary Pros and Cons of Dropping the Atomic Bomb")” People also
Perhaps one of the most controversial topics that have ever existed is whether the U.S should have dropped the atomic bomb on Japan. To some people this is a matter of morals, while to others it is a matter of what was better politically, while some others say that it was better because it reduced the number of people that died. There is two views on the atomic bomb dropping, one side says it was the right thing to do while the other side says it was the wrong thing to do and it seems as if the American people are the only ones that are saying that it was the right thing to do. In countries like Russia, China, Japan etc. they teach in schools that it was the wrong thing to do, while here kids are taught that the use of the atomic bomb was justified.
The statement “Killing 150,000 people in less than a second actually allowed fewer lives to be lost.” might sound horrendous. However, that statement is the reason why the United States was able to win the Second World War. In contrast to this statement, some people might argue that it is inhumane to massacre that many people in less than a second. The dropping of the atomic bombs on August sixth and ninth of 1945 was the correct decision for American in order to effectively and efficiently end World War Two. America should have dropped the bomb because it saved American lives, there was a lack of incentives not to use the bomb, and dropping the bombs was the quickest way to end the war.
As World War 2, came to a close, The United States unleashed a secret atomic weapon upon the enemy nation of Japan that was quickly recognized as the most powerful wartime weapon in human history. They completely destroyed the entire Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and essentially vaporized countless innocent Japanese lives. Some historians believe that it was a foolish, brutal decision to use the atomic bomb on a weakened Japan, and that the civilians of the country did not deserve that kind of mass-annihilation. On the opposite side, other historians assert that dropping the bomb saved countless American and Japanese lives by ending the war faster than a regular invasion would have. What is undisputed is that this sad event dramatically changed the course of human history.
President Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the direct cause for the end of World War II in the Pacific. The United States felt it was necessary to drop the atomic bombs on these two cities or it would suffer more casualties. Not only could the lives of many soldiers have been taken, but possibly the lives of many innocent Americans. The United States will always try to avoid the loss of American civilians at all costs, even if that means taking lives of another countries innocent civilians.
The dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan were ethical decisions made by President Harry Truman and the United States government. By the time of the atom bomb was ready, the U.S. had been engaged in military conflict for over four years and lost over 400,000 soldiers. Truman claimed, "We would have the opportunity to bring the world into a pattern in which the peace of the world and our civilization can be saved" (Winkler 18). The bomb was aimed at ending the war immediately and avoiding prolonged battle in the Pacific Theater and the inevitable invasion of Japan. President Truman hoped that by showing the Japanese the devastating weapon the U.S. possessed, that the war could be brought ...
Firstly, the bombings were unjustified because of the locations where the bombs were dropped. Neither cities were military or naval bases. Hiroshima was “… on a river delta and had been a fishing settlement for centuries” (Lawton) while Nagasaki was a shipbuilding city. Furthermore, Nagasaki had been bombed five times in the twelve months previous to the assault by the U.S. (“The Bombing of Nagasaki”). Both cities were also highly populated leading to high casualty levels. Before the attacks, Hiroshima had a population of 255,000 people and Nagasaki was home to 195,000 people. When these cities were attacked, 70,000 out of those 255,000 died in Hiroshima and 42,000 out of 195,000 perished in Nagasaki. This means that the bombings whipped out 27% of Hiroshima and 22% of the Nagasaki population (Total Casualties).
The decision to drop the atomic bomb was contemplated by officials in the American government for a prolonged period of time. Ultimately the conclusion was that dropping the bombs would be beneficial to America. The American government rationalized dropping the bombs by stating that it would terminate the war with Japan and save a plethora of American lives. America did issue an ultimatum declaring that Japan should cease to resist and in return conditions would be provided for Japan to finish the war with honor. This ultimatum was ignored and the alternative was absolute destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. (Dollinger) Most officials believed that taking this last step would force Japan’s surrender and shorten the war which would result in a decrease of American casualties. (Barnes) Winston Churchill approximated that one million American lives were preserved by utilizing the atomic bomb.
World War II, which took place from 1939 until 1945, is the most destructive war in terms of destruction and lives lost in all history. At the end of World War II, America made the decision to drop two atomic bombs on Japan to end the war quickly, and this has been a very controversial issue ever since. After the fact, many questioned the decision made by American military leaders, wondering if they had well enough considered the Nuclear Era they would bring about by dropping the atomic bombs. In discussions of dropping the atomic bombs to end World War II, one controversial issue has been whether the United States was morally justified, and there are two basic schools of thoughts in this debate. On the one hand, some argue that dropping the bombs on cities, therefore targeting civilians, makes the bombs morally wrong. On the other hand, some contend that dropping the bombs to end the war quickly saved hundreds of thousands of American lives and therefore was morally justified. My own view is that dropping the bombs was the best decision for America to make with the information that they had at that time and the enormous number of lives that were saved.
Dropping the atomic bomb was a decision that no man would want to take on. Truman went with all the facts and his gut feeling. There was Great loss for Japan but even some of the Japanese soldiers were happy that the United States dropped the bomb. For it most likely saved their lives the emperor was willing to sacrifice everyone so he wouldn’t have to surrender. Whether you decide to agree with the bomb dropping or not it wasn’t about the bomb it was about ending the war. The atomic bomb is what ended the war quicker than any other options the United States had making it the best choice.
World War II brought up many new technologies for warfare. Advanced on existing developments such as weaponry, ships, vehicles air crafts, navigational devices and medicine are just a few broad examples of developments in warfare during this time in United States and World history. One development, however, changed the entire way of warfare. The Atomic bomb was developed during this time out of fears that the Germans had the same technologies, or at least were working to obtain it. Once the United States had this technological capability of producing atomic weapons, the way of fighting was changed. Two bombs were dropped on Japan in August of 1945, one on the city of Hiroshima and the other on the city of Nagasaki. Afterward, the ear of atomic diplomacy came up in American international relations, which as we have seen today, has led to the development of even stronger, more deadly weaponry and bombs. The bombing of Japan also brings up the still prevalent debate of whether the bombings were justifiable or not. Historians Gar Alperovitz, Robert P. Newman and Barton Bernstein all have written essays expressing their opinions in the matter.
In 1945, when the Americans bombed Hiroshima, Japan, approximately 140,000 men and women were instantly killed by the effects of American nuclear defense. With such extreme brutality and force how many people must die for one to finally realize the strengths of nuclear bombs and what damage they can cause. Nuclear weapons should be outlawed because they kill thousands of innocent humans at a time, destroy the environment, and inviolate human’s right to moral and personal freedoms.