Hiroshima

Hiroshima as politics and history.

The Hiroshima incidence created a lot of debates and doubts about the reasons behind the decision of the United States to use atomic bombs in Japan. In Martin J. Sherwin article, the central theme was the reasons behind the decision of the United States to drop the bomb against Hiroshima in 1945. Martin wrote that the United States had several reasons for that decision but refused to exhibit to the general public because of the critics it might face. The reasons were:

The hope that the bomb would curb Stalin’s ambitions in East Europe and the Far East; The pressure that senior Manhattan Project administrators felt to justify the money, materials, and talent spent to build the atomic bombs; the momentum to use these new weapons created by the strategy of urban bombing; the desire to avenge Pearl Harbor and the ghastly treatment of American prisoners. Also, the advantages the United States would gain in dealing with the Soviet Union by successful use of atomic bombs against Japan.

Henry L. Stimson and Harry S. Truman were two individuals who played major roles in the tragic event. Stimson was the secretary of war and Harry the president of the United States. It was during Truman administration that, the decision was made. Stimson wrote in his article, “It was a way to end the war quickly”. He went further to explain that the administration was faced with an invasion and a nuclear attack, and the nuclear attack was a way to save more American lives.

Although the United States claim to have a tangible reason for dropping the bomb in Hiroshima; their reasons were “to end the war quickly and curb Stalin’s post war ambitions” yet evidence shows that the Japanese wanted to surrender before the bombing. Also, Victor Tolley’s visit to a Nagasaki home showed that Japanese was not ready to fight. This poses the question, what was the reasons behind the decision? The United States used the atomic attacks because they realize the...