Poll in U.S. finds support for World War II atom bombings

Wednesday 05th August, 04:58 AM JST

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DrBethM at 06:36 AM JST - 10th August

If you are interested in a perspective from someone who was 14 at the time and whose personal history was deeply interwoven with issues around nuclear weapons, I recommend this article:

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090805_ hiroshima_ day_ america _ has_ been_ asleep_ at_ the_ wheel_ for_ 64_ years/

(Note: I had to add spaces after every underline so that they would show up instead of making the text italic - take them out in your browser, or else go to http://www.truthdig.com/report/ and find the "Hiroshima Day" link.)

On the second page, he describes in detail the psychology around the dropping of the atomic bomb, how it was presented to the American public, what they knew of it beforehand (i.e., nothing), and how his perspective came to be unique but why he felt unable to express it at the time.

Anyway, I don't personally have a major axe to grind, but I thought it could lead to more of an understanding of the American culture at the time.
JustinSF at 08:21 AM JST - 10th August

War really is hell. Japan showed little to no mercy towards her enemies and showed no signs of giving up. To the US leadership and to anybody confronted with the reality of possibly invading Japan the bomb would have appeared very attractive because it would mean fewer allied casualties. As to those who argued the question, "what would make the lives of Allied soldiers more valuable than the lives of the Japanese?" My response is as follows... the lives of the Japanese were in universal terms no less valuable than any other, but when at war each side disregarded the value of their enemies' lives. If Japan had possession of the bomb before the Americans I am sure that the Emperor would have been more than happy to use it against his enemies.

The most haunting legacy of the bomb for future generations of the world is not so much the loss of life in the ill-fated cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; but the ever-looming prospect of nuclear war and global proliferation. Once the first atomic bomb had been created and tested for the first time in the deserts of the American South-West there was no turning back. For Stalin it was not as important to him that he knew how the bomb could be made but that he simply knew that the bomb worked when news confirmed just how effective the bomb was at simply making entire cities disappear in mere seconds. The fact that it did work means that global nuclear proliferation can't be stopped but only curtailed.
scooter28 at 03:46 PM JST - 10th August

First of all, this happened well before most of us commenting on this page was born, so shut up. If it didn't happen to you, no reason to be upset, right? Second of all, if the Japanese want to stay mad, look at Pearl Harbor. Your such proud people right? Answer this, take a shot to the face. Are you going to just sit there and take it? Are you going to fight back yourself? Or are you going to the cops? My thought is you will just take it, or run off to the cops because the majority are to afraid to fight back. That is why the USA is still in your country protecting it! Ask Koreans about Japanese. They are pissed off for what happened back in the day. Why don't you all apologize for what your grandfathers and great grandfathers did. You all need to grow up. I would like to see what all the Japanese and Koreans would say once the military pulls out of the pacific and Kim Jong Il decides he wants to play some games. Everyone would be crying for us to come back and help. Makes me sick.
michaelqtodd at 07:04 PM JST - 10th August

It does seem incredible in retrospect that the Japanese did not surrend immediately after Hiroshima. The US were very very close to doing Kyoto as well so I guess we just have to be grateful that that never happened and that in the past 64 years no one else either has ever used this terrible weapon.I am quite worried by the results of the poll
OssanAmerica at 03:04 AM JST - 11th August

What about Japanese actions in China and Korea? Were no civilians harmed >in those countries by Japanese troops?

Korea was part of the Japanese Empire since 1910 and durng WWII. 240,000 Koreans served in the Japanese military. Don't confuse Korea with what the Imperial Japanese Army did in China.
888naff at 03:27 AM JST - 11th August

scooter28 who are you talking to? i dont think who you think you are addressing will even know of this website.
sfjp330 at 04:39 AM JST - 11th August

If the bomb was delayed another few months, most likely, Russians would've invaded and control Hokkaido, and even today, they would control the island and Japan cannot do anyting about it. U.S. saved Hokkaido from becoming a Russian occupied island.
SebastianFlyte at 02:29 PM JST - 11th August

USA - the greatest country in the world, or the evil empire?

The only country to have used a nuclear weapon in war is the United States
dpurcell84 at 05:45 PM JST - 11th August

I would like everyone to please contrast the actions of the US upon conquering Japan, and that of Japan in China.
The US spent enormous amounts of money and resources to rebuild Japan; it Instituted reforms that gave the people more power, and continued to protect them from aggressors who would have liked to get revenge. Can you honestly say that you think Japan would have done the same thing if the tables had been turned? Not only that but it sent large amounts of grain and food to stave off starvation from the wrecked Japanese economy.
The hiding of the truth in Japanese schools makes me sick. My wife did not even know about the rape of Nanking. I learned all about the great injustices done by my country in history class. It would seem the old farts in charge here still bastards with no regard for life and care only about saving face. Or they are possibly trying to create a population that is easily manipulated by turning everyone into a bunch of mindless sheeple. I would just like to hear KyotoChris to admit for everyone here to see, and to apologize for Japans actions in and before WW2. They were the aggressors. They attacked other nations unprovoked, and raped, burned and murdered people who had already surrender in a way that defies humanity. Even going so far as to use babies as bayonet practice because the "liked the noises they made when they were killed". Voxman you have no right to talk about cowardice.
As far as I am concerned the US has no reason to apologizing for the bombs. We were not the aggressors, and Japan was offered the chance of surrender. Why should the US have to risk more of its people’s lives for a war that JAPAN started?
USARonin at 10:00 PM JST - 11th August

SF, how 'bout the Brits fire-bombin' of Euro cities in DubyaDubya 2? More folks died more horrifyin' deaths durin' that bidness.
KyotoChris at 01:10 AM JST - 12th August

Scooter 28,

First of all, this happened well before most of us commenting on this page was born, so shut up.

Try taking your own advice.

because the majority are to afraid to fight back

This is why the US rhetoric and rationale for using the bombs said that the Japanese would fight to the last person and never surrender??

The rest of your comment sounds like the reply of a child crying "he picked on me so blaaa." It's doubtful NK would do anything with just Korea and Japan in the political arena. Japan could shoot down whatever they launched at it and NK knows it's isolated enough. (unless you count on your good buddy china) YOU should grow up
KyotoChris at 01:11 AM JST - 12th August

I'm curious about those who write so negatively about Japan. If you have this feelings, why even care to read a website with news about Japan in the first place?
OssanAmerica at 02:11 AM JST - 12th August

I would like everyone to please contrast the actions of the US upon >conquering Japan, and that of Japan in China. The US spent enormous amounts of money and resources to rebuild Japan; >it Instituted reforms that gave the people more power, and continued to >protect them from aggressors who would have liked to get revenge. Can >you honestly say that you think Japan would have done the same thing if >the tables had been turned? Not only that but it sent large amounts of >grain and food to stave off starvation from the wrecked Japanese economy.

You are completely speculating for the purpose of comparison. The US did rebild Japan, as it did Germany and Europe after WWII not only for those countries but to expand our sphere of influence in the face of the Soviet Red Menace. At the end of WWII the United States was the most powerful nation on earth. You are trying to compare what Japan "would have done" when in fact they couldn't even complete their conquest plans for China and their economy was weakening as they continued to be defeated in the Pacific.

The hiding of the truth in Japanese schools makes me sick. My wife did >not even know about the rape of Nanking. I learned all about the great >injustices done by my country in history class. It would seem the old >farts in charge here still bastards with no regard for life and care >only about saving face. Or they are possibly trying to create a >population that is easily manipulated by turning everyone into a bunch >of mindless sheeple.

There is little to no "hiding" of any truth. Japanese school textbooks, which incidentally are chosen by the schools (unlike China) clearly state that Japan's aggression was wrong. What upsets you is that they don't recite your version and your figures, much of which is still debated by historians. As for "mindless sheeple", anyone in Japan can look up Nanking on the web and read arguments by both sides. Can a person in China do the same for Tianamem Square?

I would just like to hear KyotoChris to admit for everyone here to see, >and to apologize for Japans actions in and before WW2.

I was unaware that Kytochris was alive during WWII much less a War Crimminal or in any way connected to WWII.

They were the aggressors. They attacked other nations unprovoked, Yes and the Tokyo War Crimes Trials were held, they were charged, prosecuted and sentenced. And the old government was taken apart and replaced.

and >raped, burned and murdered people who had already surrender in a >way >that defies humanity. Even going so far as to use babies as bayonet >practice because the "liked the noises they made when they were killed". >Voxman you have no right to talk about cowardice.

Bayonetting babies is a bit of an urban legend created by the anti-jp chinese crowd which to date has not been substantiated in any credible form.

As far as I am concerned the US has no reason to apologizing for the >bombs. We were not the aggressors, and Japan was offered the chance of >surrender. Why should the US have to risk more of its people’s lives for >a war that JAPAN started?

Because the A-bombs represent much more than just tit-for-tat. The sheer destruction and human suffering connected to the A-bombs is what has kept the the peace through a cold war for 50 years after WWII. By the way, if you think that dropping A-bombs on 2 Japanese cities was perfectly fine, you ought to know that the United States considered dropping A-bombs on 4 yes, 4 Major Chinese cities during the Korean War. And lest you get the wrong idea, I happen to support the use of the A-bombs 100% in WWII as a necessary evil but I'm not childish enough to pretend that it wasn't wrong in retrospect.
dpurcell84 at 02:31 PM JST - 12th August
A lot to deal with, so I will take too posts:

There is no need to speculate at what the Japanese would do to an occupied nation: We have evidence of this from China, and Korea. Not only dominate the nations economically, and use their resources in a Mercantilist fashion, Japan treated the people as inferior beings and disposable trash. Please look up unit 731 to learn more on that. They used people as science experiments. Spread the plague on villages and cut up live prisoners. This is not urban legend, and it was not spread by anti-Japanese sentiment from China. There are Japanese doctors and soldiers who have come out of the closet and admitted to this.

In addition, it is hard to make a claim that Japan does not hide the facts in its textbooks considering the incredible controversy these actions have sparked around the world. While they still state the war as bad, it is done in such a way that omits the cruelty and war crimes committed by the Japanese military regime. While textbooks are chosen by individual schools, the textbooks themselves must first pass scrutiny by MEXT and all books must be chosen from an approved list. There have been three major attempts to white wash Japanese education. While the others are interesting, I will skip to the last one, which is propagated by the “Japanese Society of History Textbook Reform”

Here are two excerpts. The first is from a Junior high textbook in 1983, the second from a high school textbook in 2005:

"The Japanese army occupied the Northern China, then invaded Nanjing, and killed and destroyed the lives of many Chinese people across. Footnote: The Japanese army that occupied Nanjing killed many Chinese people inside and outside the urban district within several weeks. The number of deaths was around 7-80,000 counting only civilians such as women and children. Including the deserted soldiers the number is estimated to be over 200,000. China estimates the number of the victims to be well over 300,000 including war deaths. Japan was condemned by other nations for this incident known as Nanjing Massacre; however, the Japanese people then were not notified of the fact." (p. 277)
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"日本軍は華北を占領し、さらにナンキン（南京）へ侵攻して、各地で多くの中国民衆の生命を奪い、その生活を破壊して大きな損害をあたえた。脚注：ナンキンを占領した日本軍は、数週間のあいだに、市街地の内外で多くの中国人を殺害した。その死者の数は、婦女子・子どもをふくむ一般市民だけで7〜8万、武器を捨てた兵士をふくめると、20万以上ともいわれる。また、中国では、この殺害によるぎせい者を、戦死者をふくめ、30万以上とみている。この事件は、ナンキン大虐殺として、諸外国から非難をあびたが、日本の一般国民は、その事実を知らされなかった。"
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This is the new one from 2005, covering the same incident:

“ * Nanjing Massacre: "In August 1937, two Japanese soldiers, one an officer, were shot to death in Shanghai (the hub of foreign interests). After this incident, the hostilities between Japan and China escalated. Japanese military officials thought Chiang Kai-shek would surrender if they captured Nanking, the Nationalist capital; they occupied that city in December. *But Chiang Kai-shek had moved his capital to the remote city of Chongqing. The conflict continued. Note *At this time, many Chinese soldiers and civilians were killed or wounded by Japanese troops (the Nanking Incident). Documentary evidence has raised doubts about the actual number of victims claimed by the incident. The debate continues even today" (p. 49).

The language and the tone, has clearly changed and the last two sentences are designed to cast doubt on whether anything happened at all. They took out Japan’s use of Koreans as “comfort Woman” they omitted Japanese soldiers “helping” Okinawans to commit suicide. These are just a few cases, but I hope this makes the point.

I am not comparing China with Japan’s (or Koreas for that matter) education system. No one would believe they are more open. However, this argument is a straw man. The point is, the truth is being covered up. It does not help to point at another country and say “we are better than they are”. The problem is, the books play down Japan’s responsibility for the war and make it sound like America, out of the blue, bombed Japan.

As far as Kyotochris goes, I was actually responding to a point he made, but you are right it was done in bad taste and I take it back. Bayoneting babies was not an urban legend, there were eyewitnesses, and it is a corroborated fact from eyewitnesses: those who did the killings, western missionaries and survivors of the massacre.

For your last point, I actually agree with you. Notice, I did not say what the US did was good. What I said was they do not have to apologize to Japan for it. It was war, not of the US’s choosing, and of course there were other reasons for dropping the bombs. (Russia, the obvious big one) It was tragic, and we can only hope that something similar will never happen again.
dpurcell84 at 02:39 PM JST - 12th August

Sorry for the long post. This is for KyotoChris.

We do not hate Japan. (well at least I don't) If you hated a nation based on the sins of its fathers, there would not be anywhere in the world where you could live. no country is innocent. What is important, is that we learn from our mistakes, and attempt to not repeat them. Whith Japan covering up its own responsibilities, it becomes hard to do that. Looking for the truth is not the same as "hate".

If your friend was doing something wrong would you tell him? Or let him continue to do that thing thats wrong? Some one who truly loves his friend will say something. I complain about what the Japanese government is doing because I like Japan, not because I hate it. If you want to just burry your head in the sand then I could make the argument that you hate it.