The War between USA and Japan

The US dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. A lot of questions still linger why President Harry Truman ordered for the use of the atomic bomb on the Japanese. However, looking at the circumstances, several reasons may have necessitated the president's decision. First, the war was taking long to end with many American casualties, and the president was determined to end the war once and for all (Browne). The Japanese forces were not surrendering anytime soon, and with the increasingly adverse effects of the war on the economy and other aspects of the society, the president made the bold decision. There were also fears that the entry of the Soviet Union into the war would escalate the issue hence the need to bring the war to lasting end.

The president also ordered the bombing due to wide support he received both from his top advisors and the American public. Before the bombing, President Truman had constituted a committee to deliberate on the issue and give way forward. The committee was chaired Secretary of War Henry Stimson. The deliberations produced wide consensus backing the decision to use the atomic bomb on the Japanese city (Browne). The American public also supported the government decision since the prolonged effects of the war were adversely affecting them.

The US had also made advancements in bomb technology and had recently developed the atomic bomb. The Japanese war, therefore, provided an excellent ground for testing the effectiveness of the weapon (Kaiser). The scientist making who were taking part in the developing of the latest nuclear technology recommended the use of the bomb as a tool to review what needed to be done in improving the weaponry technology for the US military (Lindee 673). The president, therefore, consented to the test and ordered the bomb dropped.

Even though the president used the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, it might not have been the best decision due to the number of innocent civilians who were killed during the event. One of the reasons for using the atomic bomb was the reduction of the casualties that were as resulting from the war both from the American and Japanese military (Kaiser). However, the war ended up causing massive civilian casualty killing children and women were not significant in the war. According to Browne, approximately 70,000 people were killed in the initial blast which a high number considering the number of casualties that could have resulted if other alternative means were used.

The action of dropping the atomic bomb was also not the right decision considering that president and his advisors knew the devastating health effects of exposing people to nuclear elements. Scientifically, exposure to these harmful chemical results in cancer, birth defects for children and gene mutations that have a long-lasting impact on the populating (Hata, Imanishi and Miyazaki 408). Browne outlines that over 70,000 other people died gradually as a result of the bomb. The total deaths from that war can go beyond 200,000 since cancer, and other mutations took hold of the Japanese population (Hata, Imanishi and Miyazaki 410).

The Japanese forces were not surrendering soon even though they were already defeated hence the use of the atomic bomb. However, the other alternative to end the war was a military invasion of all the Japanese cities and islands. Unfortunately, this scenario would have caused more destruction and deaths compared the military bomb option (Lindee 675). The president and the members of the atomic bomb committee considered all these alternatives before settling on the use of the bombs.

In conclusion, the action of President Harry Truman ordering the bomb was justified since it brought an immediate end to the war between America and Japan. However, the president could have considered the devastating impacts of the nuclear arsenal before executing the action. However, considering that the military invasion option to invasion could have created severe destruction and more casualties, the use the bomb may have been the best option.

Works Cited

Browne, Ryan. "Why Did The U.S. Bomb Hiroshima?." CNN. N.p., 2016. Web. 5 Dec. 2017.

Kaiser, David. "Why The United States Dropped Atomic Bombs In 1945." Time. N.p., 2016. Web. 5 Dec. 2017.

Lindee, Susan. "Atomic Tragedy: Henry L. Stimson And The Decision To Use The Bomb Against Japan." Peace & Change 35.4 (2010): 673-675. Web.

Hata, Tomoko, Daisuke Imanishi, and Yasushi Miyazaki. "Lessons From The Atomic Bomb About Secondary MDS." Current Hematologic Malignancy Reports 9.4 (2014): 407-411. Web.

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