Two early critics of the bombings were Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard, who had together spurred the first bomb research in 1939 with a jointly written letter to President Roosevelt. Szilard, who had gone on to play a major role in the Manhattan Project, argued:

"Let me say only this much to the moral issue involved: Suppose Germany had developed two bombs before we had any bombs. And suppose Germany had dropped one bomb, say, on Rochester and the other on Buffalo, and then having run out of bombs she would have lost the war. Can anyone doubt that we would then have defined the dropping of atomic bombs on cities as a war crime, and that we would have sentenced the Germans who were guilty of this crime to death at Nuremberg and hanged them?."[50]

i guess i was wrong... it wasn't tokyo that was a primary target.. it was "Kokura"

Your logic(?) escapes me.

Because we wanted to nuke the japanese people, not just radiate their land.

So, we should have just kept killing them off one at a time, and losing more of our soldiers while we waited?

They were warned, but couldn't read english.

its also worth pointing out that Japan did not surrender after the first bomb. Japan only surrendered after the second bomb because Russia was getting ready to invade them as well. The US was also planning an invasion of Japan.

People make it sound like they were just a bunch of happy go lucky people, hanging out, smoking weed, catching butterflies and playing hacky sack until out of the blue, the US decided to murder them. The fact is that Japan had comitted more attrocities than Nazi Germany and had ZERO intent of surrendering. Senior Japanese military officers were also planning to kidnap the Emporer himself (or attempted to) to make sure there was no surrender.

I don't see how it does..? If you have the most powerful weapon on Earth (which Japan did not believe America had) and use it once (which proved to Japan America had it), that should be more than enough to show your enemy what you are capable of. Why would dropping two, three, four or more bombs have any effect beyond the initial bomb? Sure it's devastating the second time, but no more so than the first. It's not like the second bomb was significantly more destructive than the first or caused significantly more widespread fallout.

The only thing I can come up with is that they were on their own timetable and were going to surrender at or around the same time they did regardless of the 2nd bomb being dropped. The only other thing I could see is they assumed we only had ONE bomb and after it was dropped we gave up our trump card? and I highly doubt that line of reasoning.

naw, but we could have tested our superweapon in a way so that they could have seen the potential destruction, without killing 80k civilians. then threaten it against a major city within 3 days unless surrender on our terms

it would seem to put the moral burden on them for their civilian deaths+ i cant envision any change in our leverage or what the results would have been nor our exposure at the time

im only thinking about it cause i bet a bunch of iraqis would like to bomb my town right now cause of the actions of the US

we did warn them. brush up on your history.

that was a warning we could have given them without the ace up our sleeve(bomb), it doesnt say surrender or we are going to start destroying cities

im not the only one that thinks this way


Other U.S. military officers who disagreed with the necessity of the bombings include General Douglas MacArthur (the highest-ranking officer in the Pacific Theater), Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy (the Chief of Staff to the President), General Carl Spaatz (commander of the U.S. Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific), and Brigadier General Carter Clarke (the military intelligence officer who prepared intercepted Japanese cables for U.S. officials),[64] and Admiral Ernest King, U.S. Chief of Naval Operations, Undersecretary of the Navy Ralph A. Bard,[65] and Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief of the Pacific Fleet.[66]

"The Japanese had, in fact, already sued for peace. The atomic bomb played no decisive part, from a purely military point of view, in the defeat of Japan." Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.[67]
"The use of [the atomic bombs] at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated and ready to surrender." Admiral William D. Leahy, Chief of Staff to President Truman.[67]
The United States Strategic Bombing Survey, after interviewing hundreds of Japanese civilian and military leaders after Japan surrendered, reported:

"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."[68][67]

i want to know how the usa dropped pamphlets to warn the citizens

who said that anyway

Uhh lol you are either really liberal, naive or young. Extremist muslims have wanted to bomb your town for decades now. Their initial hatred has nothing to do with the Iraq war.

you get into an airplane with a box of pamphlets and enough fuel... taxi out onto the airstrip, throttle up on the engine, pull back on the yoke... get airborn, climb to cruising altitude... point the plane to japan.. once over the target, drop the pamphlets.

Leaflets dropped on cities in Japan warning civilians about the atomic bomb, dropped c. August 6, 1945

TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE:
America asks that you take immediate heed of what we say on this leaflet.

We are in possession of the most destructive explosive ever devised by man. A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s can carry on a single mission. This awful fact is one for you to ponder and we solemnly assure you it is grimly accurate.

We have just begun to use this weapon against your homeland. If you still have any doubt, make inquiry as to what happened to Hiroshima when just one atomic bomb fell on that city.

Before using this bomb to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this useless war, we ask that you now petition the Emperor to end the war. Our president has outlined for you the thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender. We urge that you accept these consequences and begin the work of building a new, better and peace-loving Japan.

You should take steps now to cease military resistance. Otherwise, we shall resolutely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to promptly and forcefully end the war.

EVACUATE YOUR CITIES.

ATTENTION JAPANESE PEOPLE. EVACUATE YOUR CITIES.
Because your military leaders have rejected the thirteen part surrender declaration, two momentous events have occurred in the last few days.

The Soviet Union, because of this rejection on the part of the military has notified your Ambassador Sato that it has declared war on your nation. Thus, all powerful countries of the world are now at war with you.

Also, because of your leaders' refusal to accept the surrender declaration that would enable Japan to honorably end this useless war, we have employed our atomic bomb.

A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s could have carried on a single mission. Radio Tokyo has told you that with the first use of this weapon of total destruction, Hiroshima was virtually destroyed.

Before we use this bomb again and again to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this useless war, petition the emperor now to end the war. Our president has outlined for you the thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender. We urge that you accept these consequences and begin the work of building a new, better, and peace-loving Japan.

Act at once or we shall resolutely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to promptly and forcefully end the war.

EVACUATE YOUR CITIES.

Japan's cities were built around heavy military industrial centers and naval ports.

How many military targets did Japan hit in Korean villages?

mabe you are right...but im thinking...i dont thnk anyone was just flying over japan..lol

i mean if they could...there wouldnt really be a war

Japan is changing their histor books to say they didnt do anything wrong in WW2

America and everyone else already wrote theirs to say they did no wrong

just think about it

You sure like to make assumptions. Too bad you have absolutely no clue of the mindset of war-time Japan.

Pretty convenient that their timetable suddenly synched up with ours after the second bomb was dropped.

They could not read english, so that wouldn't help much.

I don't know if you are stupid, or just don't know how to debate, or can't admit when you are wrong.

Which would it be?

I smell anti-Americanism in this thread.

there is no way anyone dropped any warning
look for japanese survivors and their story

do they speak of leaflet s written in japanese warning of imminent death

please note how i purposefully worded my post to avoid mentioning recent events such as the iraq war

Oh come on I am sure the leaflets were in Japanese, they also broadcast the message over Radio Saipan which Japanese language so either way they knew it was coming.

anti establishment


not anti-american....its all the same people at the top anyway

ok... you have always seemed like a pretty nice guy, so i'll be easy and subtle and try my best to be gentle. there are two HUGE clues in this conversation as to whether or not the US was flying over japan. ;)

Brad, I know you are smarter than that. Leaflets are frequently dropped from planes as warnings to citizens to leave or die.

huge secret mission just to get those planes close enough to japan to drop the bombs...no room for error..just enough gas to get back
I can buy they might have sent radio signals warning them something was coming...but i doubt they did that either.

it was WAR

Ahhh I got it you are an anarchist?
http://www.taylor.org/~argus/all/loc...iller_punk.JPG

which is America, and you are always against America . . . just admit it

I just dont think it is very probable

im going to do some research...and look up some japanese survivors stories

then we shall see if they were warned

Yes because we all know the Japanese dont lie, only Americans. I am pretty sure survivors are not going to like America that much to say we did anything noble at all before the bombs dropped. Use your head.

and it was the USA, they had to be out to kill all the ciovilians they could . . . right?

And do you think we only flew over Japan twice?

What would be the point of dropping leaflets?

People would need to get away in time, and no way they would risk giving the Japanese military that time to prepare shooting down the plane from air or artillery- the first atomic bomb ever carried on a plane :1orglaugh

haha nice pic

no...i just speak my mind when i tink things dont add up

leave it at that

Baddog...youknow i love the USA

another idiot that thinks Hiroshima was our first flight over japan

im disappointed in you, its been civil until now, your weaknesses are showing

lets say it was up to you to end the war and you had just gotten this neat new weapon, are you saying that the best plan of action would be the one that was taken?

you enjoy our $$, buit that is about it

Weee I am in alot of multipage threads lately!

besides, im not really set on my position, i have an open mind and this is a discussion, asshole

Dude... get real. The US had flown several bombing missions over Japan by this point. Their air defenses were non existent, thier air force obliterated. they had already bombed Tokyo

Wow. all you have to do is read the timeline of events. there is nothing to debate here.

Have I ever said that, and whats your point?

C'mon, the hole operation was top secret and they were even worried that Ebola Gay could lift off. We are not talking about modern missiles, so no way they would give them time to defend themself. I think anyone with common sense of military stragety will agree.

so you are arguing just to argue . . . okay, as long as I understand that you are just bored and don't really mean any of this idiotic stuff you are epousing.

Kind of like Phoenix and his spacemen

In the battle for Stalingrad both sides dropped propaganda leaflets on a regular basis. Maybe Japanese citizens were told to ignore them, but they were dropped, their government was warned.

I think I was pretty clear.

phoenix

About an hour before the bombing, the Japanese early warning radar net detected the approach of some American aircraft headed for the southern part of Japan. The alert had been given and radio broadcasting stopped in many cities, among them Hiroshima. The planes approached the coast at a very high altitude. At nearly 08:00, the radar operator in Hiroshima determined that the number of planes coming in was very small?probably not more than three?and the air raid alert was lifted (to conserve fuel and aircraft, the Japanese had decided not to intercept small formations).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_...a_and_Nagasaki

http://www.answers.com/topic/atomic-...a-and-nagasaki

so looks like no warning to the japanese people...until after the hiroshima bomb

but then also no warnings for the people of NAgasaki where the second bomb hit

i mean ifyou can trust this info...id look deeper but...the history buffs here will know for sure wont you guys....i mean it said it in your history books? is that where you learnt that you warned the people first?

keepin mind this thread isnt..why didnt japan warn its people

no, im making valid points that you are calling stupid because you dont have a good argument against them

now answer my question

lets say it was up to you to end the war and you had just gotten this neat new weapon, are you saying that the best plan of action would be the one that was taken?