12/13/2023 0 Comments Ww2 bomb messages![]() ![]() The major arguments against the bomb are as follows: 1) using the bomb was immoral 2) Truman’s demand for an unconditional surrender hindered the Japanese peace faction 3) offshore demonstration of the bomb would have sufficed 4) Japan wartime leaders were soon to surrender 5) invasion was a more humane alternative and 6) there were ulterior motives such as warning off the Soviets or justifying the development expense of the Manhattan Project by demonstration on a human target. This leads to further speculation on the human costs of the invasion of the home islands planned for that November. Because those who argue the bomb should not have been used suggest counter-factual scenarios, I too will ponder the “what ifs” by noting continued Japanese warfare immediately before and after the bombs were dropped on August 6 and 9, 1945. Within the limits of this brief essay I will cite arguments against the bomb more fully articulated elsewhere in this issue, and place Truman’s decision in the historical context of a bitter war. Understanding both sides of the debate is critical to developing a more nuanced understanding of the bomb decision. It is easy to condemn a weapon of mass destruction, but more difficult to understand why Truman and his inner circle made the decision to use it. As teachers who want to foster critical thinking skills in our students, we must expose them to facts and interpretations that may not be politically correct. The horror of the bomb, both real and in our conscience, has led to a debate that continues today. This minor incident is indicative of a much wider reluctance among many in the academic and teaching community to consider all historical aspects of a morally difficult topic. The phrase-without the question mark I add above to my own title-comes from a passage in William Manchester’s Goodbye Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War. I once received a call from the concerned editor of an education journal: “Could you find a source other than Thank God for the Atom Bomb? We feel it inappropriate for teachers to see it in a journal dedicated to international understanding.” Since the essay on travel versus tourism that I wanted to cite appeared only in this provocatively titled collection of Paul Fussell essays, they finally did allow it to appear in a footnote. Re-envisioning Asia: Contestations and Struggles in the Visual Arts.Distinguished Service to the Association for Asian Studies Award.Distinguished Contributions to Asian Studies Award.Striving for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Asian Studies: Humanities Grants for Asian Studies Scholars.Gosling-Lim Postdoctoral Fellowship in Southeast Asian Studies.Cultivating the Humanities & Social Sciences Initiative Grants.Key Issues in Asian Studies Book Series.Connect, Collaborate, Contribute: AAS Membership Recruitment Drive.AAS Takes Action to Build Diversity & Equity in Asian Studies.AAS Community Forum Log In and Participate. ![]()
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