How to End a World War

On August 6, 1945, the first of two atomic bombs was dropped on Japan in an attempt to minimize both military and civilian casualties due to an ignorant and prideful Japanese government. President Truman is quoted as saying, “I have to decide Japanese strategy-shall we invade Japan proper or shall we bomb and blockade?

That is my hardest decision to date. But I’ll make it when I have all the facts.” This was the hardest decision any President has ever faced, without question. Understanding what it means to drop an atomic weapon on an enemy city is terrifying.

For any person with a soul to examine all other possible alternatives and conclude the sanest is to incinerate hundreds of thousands of people means that person had to have some pretty poor options.

Considering the casualties both sides would suffer if an invasion of the Japanese mainland was undertaken, Truman made the right decision. The Japanese were unwilling to surrender, and multiple sources, including the Japanese themselves, told President Truman to expect very heavy, fortified resistance. Knowing full well what it would take to force Japan to capitulate, again, Truman made the right decision.

It’s interesting to note that before the bombs were dropped, approval of how the Japanese government was handling the war was eroding. The general populace was no longer enamored with the government’s empty rhetoric. The war was clearly being lost, not won, as they were continually told to believe. The conventional bombings conducted throughout the mainland of Japan prior to the use of nuclear weapons produced substantially higher casualties than did the two atomic bombs

The Japanese people were unhappy with the war effort, and wished for it to come to an end, for fear of more American raids. Unfortunate as it was, civilians were often hit hardest by these raids, as the targeted industrial complexes were not clearly defined. American strategy dictated a strong assault on industry to try and end Japan’s ability to fight. Even existing among residential areas, their military value was still high enough to warrant collateral damage.

President Truman has been thus placed in the spotlight since that day as the only man ever to order a nuclear strike. As terrible as it may have been, it was indeed necessary. Arguments can be made to say that the naval blockade was working, the Soviets were about to turn the tide, and Japan was in the process of seeking peace.

All of these points contradict what Truman was told by his top advisors, and by Japan’s top level leaders. Surrender was not an option, and Japan was willing to commit itself to this war until every last man, woman, and child had been killed, effectively eliminating the entire nation of Japan. When faced with those options, I argue that Truman took the humane option and forced Japan’s hand the only way he could, by dropping the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.