US government documents admit the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was not necessary to end WWII. Japan was on the verge of surrendering. It was the first US strike in its Cold War on the USSR
This is a great telling of history but to imply that 200,000 people didn’t have to die ignores that fact of war and what happens in all types of aerial bombings. Do not forget that the allies carpet bombed Germany and killed millions of civilians and if the A-Bomb wasn’t dropped on Japan one has to assume that there would have been a similar number of civilians killed via conventional bombing as the A-Bomb killed. The choice is and never was kill 200k civilians or kill zero, war is not that simple.
Allied carpet bombing of Germany didn't kill millions. Only 350,000 to 500,000. Thus in two atomic bomb drops, the US killed almost as many Japanese as they did in their entire strategic bombing campaign of Germany. Include the fire bombing of other Japanese cities and we killed up to almost a million Japanese civilians, about twice as many as compared to German civilians we killed. Iit starts to look like the US had a somewhat racist attitude towards Asian civilian lives, maybe regarding them as less human. Especially considering our usage of bombs and napalm in Korea and then Vietnam, where we did kill millions.
500k burnt Germans and about the same amount of burnt Japanese is still significantly larger than 200k who died from the A-bomb. The point of my post is that the author is implying the US had a choice to kill 200k with the A-bomb or kill almost no one and that is false
Nice for throwing out the worn out racist card - when you can’t make your point intelligently just throw racist epithets about. Oh well.
I wasn't throwing it out at you Barely_Free. If you consult primary sources, I think you'll find that WW2 was an extremely racial war. Germany was racially motivated vs the Jews and Slavs. The British Empire coined 'the White Man's Burden' (of colonialism). The Japanese also had extremely strong racial positions in their conquests. The US was also an insanely racist nation at that point, and if you look at our propaganda writings (and language used by the people at the time), Japanese were depicted as sub-human to a much greater degree than the German people. We didn't make internment camps for people of recent German descent, did we?
It is made abundantly clear in historical research that the killing of the 200,000 by the 2 atomic bombs was a political choice, as Japan's surrender was imminent without any further killing. At the time, It was that simple.
The horrific nature of the history and the depth of the atrocities makes it really tough - for me-
to absorb.
The 90 minute video about Abe though overwhelmed me. You repeated yourself so many times that it does not flow. I know you are capable of compelling narrative but it seems that your anger - righteous anger focused as appropriate on the US complicity in ahistorical lies about genocidal hideous crimes - effects a sputtering rage that obscures the story via the choppy report.
Clearly we are yet dominated and constrained by powerful anti - communist elements around the world. It is terrifying to consider the history of carnage and terror these forces have imposed for many decades now.
I appreciate very much the courage and scope of your journalism.
May you find plentiful and widening circles of allies and support in your work.
This is a great telling of history but to imply that 200,000 people didn’t have to die ignores that fact of war and what happens in all types of aerial bombings. Do not forget that the allies carpet bombed Germany and killed millions of civilians and if the A-Bomb wasn’t dropped on Japan one has to assume that there would have been a similar number of civilians killed via conventional bombing as the A-Bomb killed. The choice is and never was kill 200k civilians or kill zero, war is not that simple.
Allied carpet bombing of Germany didn't kill millions. Only 350,000 to 500,000. Thus in two atomic bomb drops, the US killed almost as many Japanese as they did in their entire strategic bombing campaign of Germany. Include the fire bombing of other Japanese cities and we killed up to almost a million Japanese civilians, about twice as many as compared to German civilians we killed. Iit starts to look like the US had a somewhat racist attitude towards Asian civilian lives, maybe regarding them as less human. Especially considering our usage of bombs and napalm in Korea and then Vietnam, where we did kill millions.
500k burnt Germans and about the same amount of burnt Japanese is still significantly larger than 200k who died from the A-bomb. The point of my post is that the author is implying the US had a choice to kill 200k with the A-bomb or kill almost no one and that is false
Nice for throwing out the worn out racist card - when you can’t make your point intelligently just throw racist epithets about. Oh well.
I wasn't throwing it out at you Barely_Free. If you consult primary sources, I think you'll find that WW2 was an extremely racial war. Germany was racially motivated vs the Jews and Slavs. The British Empire coined 'the White Man's Burden' (of colonialism). The Japanese also had extremely strong racial positions in their conquests. The US was also an insanely racist nation at that point, and if you look at our propaganda writings (and language used by the people at the time), Japanese were depicted as sub-human to a much greater degree than the German people. We didn't make internment camps for people of recent German descent, did we?
It is made abundantly clear in historical research that the killing of the 200,000 by the 2 atomic bombs was a political choice, as Japan's surrender was imminent without any further killing. At the time, It was that simple.
Truth in history is critical just as a true history of the US.
Thanks Ben for educating me.
The horrific nature of the history and the depth of the atrocities makes it really tough - for me-
to absorb.
The 90 minute video about Abe though overwhelmed me. You repeated yourself so many times that it does not flow. I know you are capable of compelling narrative but it seems that your anger - righteous anger focused as appropriate on the US complicity in ahistorical lies about genocidal hideous crimes - effects a sputtering rage that obscures the story via the choppy report.
Clearly we are yet dominated and constrained by powerful anti - communist elements around the world. It is terrifying to consider the history of carnage and terror these forces have imposed for many decades now.
I appreciate very much the courage and scope of your journalism.
May you find plentiful and widening circles of allies and support in your work.