Statement by the President Announcing the use of the A-Bomb at Hiroshima. President Harry Truman argues that the US is growing its power every day, as shown by the use of the Atomic Bomb at Hiroshima. This is the first time atomic energy has ever been used in the world and with the power of it, the United States will crumble everything in its path until they see a white flag. Truman thinks that with this power, nobody will be stupid enough to fight back or not surrender. While there is no real persuasion going on, Truman does try to raise the country morale by saying the United States is the greatest military and nobody will ever want to mess with us again. He provides examples of what would happen if someone did try to stand against us, saying that we would rain ruin from the air and attack the beaches with great force. He starts by saying how Japan started the war at Pearl Harbor, but the United States has taken its revenge and paid it back. This gives off a sense of American pride as it shows how when we didn’t let their attack go unannounced, we made sure they felt what we felt. …show more content…
He only provides statistics of how much TNT the A-Bomb amounts to, and that the scientists of the United States and Britain came together to create this weapon of mass destruction. Truman makes statements that promote American nationalism throughout the country. Through his writing, he puts off the idea that the United States is and will always be a formidable opponent with the invention of the atomic bomb. This somewhat supports his argument that the United States military is growing every day because a country’s military power can be judged by how “scary” or menacing it
In Prompt and Utter Destruction, J. Samuel Walker provides the reader with an elaborate analysis of President Truman’s decision behind using the atomic bomb in Japan. He provokes the reader to answer the question for himself about whether the use of the bomb was necessary to end the war quickly and without the loss of many American lives. Walker offers historical and political evidence for and against the use of the weapon, making the reader think critically about the issue. He puts the average American into the shoes of the Commander and Chief of the United States of America and forces us to think about the difficulty of Truman’s decision.
The book “Hiroshima,” written by John Hersey is an alluring piece coupled with an underlining, mind grabbing message. The book is a biographical text about the lives of six people: Miss Sasaki, Dr. Fujii, Mrs. Nakamura, Father Kleinsorge, Dr. Sasaki, and Rev. Tanimoto, in Hiroshima, Japan. It speaks of these aforementioned individuals’ lives, following the dropping of the world’s first atomic bomb on 06 Aug 1945, and how it radically changed them, forever. John Hersey, the author of “Hiroshima,” attempts to expose the monstrosity of the atomic bomb, through his use of outstanding rhetoric, descriptive language, and accounts of survivors. He also attempts to correlate the Japanese civilians of Hiroshima to the American public, in hope that Americans
According to document A, President Truman believed that it was his duty to protect and save American lives And that's exactly what he did. If we did not go through with the atomic bomb, then we would have had to get Japan to surrender another way, yeah we could have put up an economic blockade and continuously bombed them like Admiral William Leahy wanted to do in in document A. Or we could have invaded and lost many more lives in the process, the war would have dragged on costing more American lives and more money for the United States.
A nobel prize winning, architect of the atomic bomb, and well-known theoretical physicist, Professor Richard P. Feynman, at the 1955 autumn meeting of the National Academy of science, addresses the importance of science and its impact on society. Feynman contends, although some people may think that scientists don't take social problems into their consideration, every now and then they think about them. However he concedes that, because social problems are more difficult than the scientific ones, scientist don’t spend too much time resolving them (1). Furthermore he states that scientist must be held responsible for the decisions they make today to protect the future generation; also they have to do their best, to learn as much as possible,
President Harry Truman’s use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan during the Second World War is the most controversial decision in history. While it was an undoubtedly difficult decision, it was indeed necessary in order to end this six-year war that had ravaged the world. While many critics argue that the bomb was used primarily as an act of vengeance toward Japan, simplifying such a crucial moment in human history downplays the very real risk invading Japan posed to the United States. While avoiding strained relations with the other Allied countries, Truman had to assess the possible danger of the Soviet Union in a post-war world. Furthermore, the possibility of an arms race, the moral implications of using this weapon, and the number of American lives that would possibly be lost invading Japan were among the numerous pros and cons Truman had to consider when contemplating the use of this powerful weapon never before unleashed on humanity.
O'Neal, Michael. President Truman and the Atomic Bomb: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego, Calif.: Greenhaven Press, 1990. Print.
The dropping of the atomic bomb was a major turning point in United Sates history and WW2 specifically, it caused the surrender of Japan and ultimately ended the war which had been going on since 1939 two years prior to U.S. involvement. The dropping of the atomic bomb not only ended the war but lead to a fight over which nation had the most atomic weapons, a terrifying power play between countries. Through the years leading up to the dropping of the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki the United States struggles with preventing the speed of communism and intimidating the Soviet Union. Through WW2 American casualties were also adding up fast. The use of the atomic bombs was a shock strategy the government saw as the most successful was to
At that point in time, America was at a crossroads. They hit a dead end and the only logical way to get out was to use the bombs. If people tried to put themselves in Truman’s position, they would question and rethink their opinion almost instantly. In an article titled “Atomic Bomb: Why did President Harry S Truman Order the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?” it states, “as Chief Executive of the United States it was his duty to make every effort to end World War II” in order to justify Truman’s stance on the
The United States gained supremacy by using the atomic bomb as a threat to force their enemies to surrender. After Japan led an attack on Pearl Harbor, the American forces retaliated by dropping an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and then threatening to do the same on Nagasaki. “We have just begun to use this weapon against your homeland. If you still have any doubt, make inquiry as to what happened to Hiroshima when just one atomic bomb fell on that city” (Department). This shows how the atomic bomb was used as a means of intimidation; the use of the atomic bomb forced other countries into submission by threatening them with nuclear attack. Furthermore, the United States made it clear to its enemies that they had alternative options for reconciliation before nuclear attacks were to take place. The President of the United States explained “thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender,” and urged that Japan “accept those consequences and begin the work of building a new, better, and peace loving Japan” (Department). This demonstrates the use of an ethical appeal by the United States because it arrouses ones sense of duty to preserve peace. While war was inevitable, the U.S. hoped that the threat of nuclear destruction would force other countries into negotiating peace instead of fighting. Evidently, by using nuclear threats as a form of intimidation, the U...
The attack at Pearl Harbor was the event that caused the U.S. to decide to be involved in the war. After this incident, the U.S. was trying to find a way to retaliate and counterattack against Japan. Some thought that the only way to do so was by using atomic bombs. People like, General Dwight Eisenhower, Harry S Truman, and a group of scientists believed that the use of the bomb would do good, and finally end everything. Eisenhower believed that because the use of the atomic bomb was successful in New Mexico, it would also be successful in Japan as well. Harry S Truman thought that even the atomic bomb was the most destructive weapon in the history of the world, it could be made the most useful. He stated that, “it was ...
“With this bomb we have now added a new and revolutionary increase in destruction to supplement the growing power of our armed forces”- President Truman. In the 1945, President Truman was faced with an atomic dilemma in the most destructive war that mankind has seen so far. His choices were to either bomb Japan or let more American soldiers die. He chose to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He chose the most likeable choice in America at the time. If I was able to tell President Truman one thing, it would be, drop the atomic bombs on Japan and end the four year war for America. Japan started the war on America with the bombing of Pearl Harbor, America repaid the debt back to Japan many fold(top secret).
The world cried and wept for an end to World War II. All of the endless slaughter,fighting,and violence needed to stop. With one last nation,not standing, on its knees was struggling to continue the war. This nation was Japan. The people of Japan were suffering the burden of having a communist government and they were waiting for an end for World War II also. The United States had just that, an ending for World War Two. This ending came in the form of a 9,700 pound bomb called “Little Boy”. This Atomic Bomb was dropped upon the people of Hiroshima on the day of August 6, 1945 at exactly 8:15am, a Monday. It has been argued that we should or shouldn't have dropped the bomb on Hiroshima due to the after effects of the bomb. But I believe that dropping the Atomic Bomb had more benefits rather than the outcomes that would have occurred if we hadn't.
It was certainly a reasonable view for the USA to take, since they had suffered the loss of more than thousands of lives, both military and civilian. To the top rank of the US military, the death toll was worth it to prevent the “many thousands of American troops that would have been killed in invading Japan.” This was a grave consequence taken seriously by the U.S. The atomic bomb was one of the most powerful weapons to be built during this time. Truman may not have been aware of the aftermath, causes and effects it would have, but he knew just how powerful this weapon was.
The Nazi’s believed humans were classified into different “races” based on their distinctive characteristics, behavior, and abilities. Their fundamental principle involved controlling the existence of other nations so that Germany would be the rising nation. Hitler wanted to create a race that was pure he defines “in biological terms as a factor transmitted through the blood that distinguished a group of people from all the other groups not only physically but also mentally and spiritually” (23). His ideal race would be an “Aryan” race, which consisted of blonde hair, blue eyed and tall individuals. Germans believed they were “racially superior” and that Jews were considered “inferior”.
On August 6, 1945 the first of two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan by the United States in order to finish World War II. The first one landed over the heavily populated city of Hiroshima. The second bomb was dropped, not only three days later, on August 9, 1945 on another Japanese city called Nagasaki. Both atomic bombs made terrible impacts on the cities they were dropped on. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed beyond belief leaving a trail of dust where once families lived a normal life. The U.S. should not have dropped the Atomic Bomb on Japan because it affected the climate and world’s mindset, targeted two sites that were not military bases, and killed a profuse amount of innocent citizens.