Should We Have Dropped the Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

¶ … United States' decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan in WWII was motivated by a desire for a decisive victory, an unnecessary act against a country that was would have surrendered without the use of the bomb, and a disturbing use of force that created worldwide fear and horror about the use of nuclear weapons.

The bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima by the United States were justified by the American government as a reasonable means to bring a quick end to a bloody and long war that had engulfed the world for years. However, critics have argued that dropping the bombs was a completely unnecessary act, as a beleaguered Japan would have surrendered to the United States within days, even if the bombs had never been dropped.

Further, critics argued that the United States' decision was ultimately motivated by a political desire to assert itself as a military and political power. Further, the bombing is now often seen as one of the cornerstone events that led to worldwide hysteria and fear about the effects of nuclear weapons that developed in the time of the Cold War between the United States and the U.S.S.R. Ultimately, given these important considerations, the United States should not have dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

When Harry Truman dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, the United States rationalized the bombing as a necessary means to end WWII. The bomb that the United States dropped on the city of Hiroshima killed 200,000 people and destroyed the city. In quick succession, a second bomb in Nagasaki resulted in the deaths of 79,000 people. Five days after the bombings, Japan surrendered to the United States of America. Seemingly, the close association of the bombings at Nagasaki and Hiroshima with the surrender of Japan suggests that the U.S.

act resulted in the Japanese surrender. However, critics have argued that the United States' dropping the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima was completely unnecessary, given that Japan was already ready to surrender before the bombings. When the atomic bomb was dropped, the United States had conventionally bombed over 60 Japanese cities, had a successful sea blockade against the Japanese, and the Japanese were aware that they were losing the war. At the time of the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Japan was days away from surrendering to the United States.

The United States' real motivation for bombing Nagasaki and Hiroshima is often regarded as motivated by the United States' desire to have decisive victory. By using the atomic bomb, the U.S. conveyed a clear message to the rest of the world about U.S. military power and the consequences of military action against the United States.

Critics have also argued that the United States' decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki heralded an era in which fear and terror about the use of nuclear weapons dominated the world stage. Certainly, images of the human costs of the bombing of Hiroshima were disturbing and haunting. Both Americans and citizens of other countries around the world understandably reacted to these images with fear and horror.

The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and associated images played a large role in Americans' hysteria and fear about atomic weapons that developed during the Cold War of the 1950s and 1960s. During this time, Americans built bomb shelters, children were instructed on how to survive a nuclear attack in schools, and many Americans lived in an understandable fear of the effects of the atomic bomb.

In conclusion, the United States should not have dropped atomic bombs on Japan in WWII, given that their decision to drop the bombs was: 1) motivated by a desire for a decisive victory, 2) an unnecessary act against a country that was would.