On the morning of August 6, 1945, Reverend Tanimoto and the people in the city of Hiroshima were preparing for a possible B-29 bomber raid on the city. The cities surrounding Hiroshima had been raided already, and a rumor was going around that “the Americans were saving something special for the city (Hiroshima).” Suddenly, a white flash was seen in the sky and a storm of debris followed. The city of Hiroshima was in ruins and the people were in a state of hysteria. Although the people did not know it at that moment, a B-29 bomber had dropped an atomic bomb onto Hiroshima. For decades, people have debated over the atomic bombing of Hiroshima (and Nagasaki three days later) during World War II. However, it is evident that the atomic
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On July 26, 1945, the allies broadcasted a message to the Japanese government demanding “the unconditional surrender” of the Japanese armed forces. The warning threatened that refusal would result in the destruction of Japan. However, it did not mention any weapons of mass destruction. Japan had fought for four years before the bombing of Hiroshima. They did not know that it would come to an atomic bomb. Another argument is that the atomic bomb saved millions of lives. President Truman defended his decision to deploy the bombs by saying that the bombs were dropped on a military base as a way to quickly end the war. This statement was false, because although soldiers were killed during the strike, a majority of the victims were civilians. The co-pilot of the Enola Gay (the B-29) was terrified as soon as the bomb dropped from the plane. Robert A. Lewis is known for saying: “I honestly have the Wong 4feeling of groping for words to explain this or I might say my God what have we done." To showcase the United States’ power, the bomb could have been dropped on an isolated military base instead. The war did not end until the Japanese Emperor announced Japan’s surrender over the radio on August 15, 1945. Even though the war was ended following the atomic bombs, Japan was left crippled with a two destroyed cities and hundreds of thousands of people whose lives would never be the same
On July 26, 1945, the allies broadcasted a message to the Japanese government demanding “the unconditional surrender” of the Japanese armed forces. The warning threatened that refusal would result in the destruction of Japan. However, it did not mention any weapons of mass destruction. Japan had fought for four years before the bombing of Hiroshima. They did not know that it would come to an atomic bomb. Another argument is that the atomic bomb saved millions of lives. President Truman defended his decision to deploy the bombs by saying that the bombs were dropped on a military base as a way to quickly end the war. This statement was false, because although soldiers were killed during the strike, a majority of the victims were civilians. The co-pilot of the Enola Gay (the B-29) was terrified as soon as the bomb dropped from the plane. Robert A. Lewis is known for saying: “I honestly have the Wong 4feeling of groping for words to explain this or I might say my God what have we done." To showcase the United States’ power, the bomb could have been dropped on an isolated military base instead. The war did not end until the Japanese Emperor announced Japan’s surrender over the radio on August 15, 1945. Even though the war was ended following the atomic bombs, Japan was left crippled with a two destroyed cities and hundreds of thousands of people whose lives would never be the same