Hiroshima Responses

T

he other day, I posted a comment that reflected something I had recently read. I was surprised at the number of comments I received. I was just expressing my feelings and commenting on the conclusions of a scholar in a recent book. Just to set the record straight, as if such a thing were necessary for such a subject:

1. Dizzo: I must admit that I was surprised and rather pleased to get a comment from you. Your comment reminds me that many--if not all--of my subscribers actually read my posts even if I don't always get feedback in the form of comments. Thanks. I truly appreciate your input. We may not always agree but, hey, that is the spice of life, right? It is certainly the spice of American political life.
2. I don't necessarily agree with all of Hasegawa's conclusions, but they are the first to be based on a fairly thorough reading of all available documents in Japanese, English and Russian, something I doubt anyone on Xanga has done. If nothing else, it should at least give us pause to consider alternative ideas and possibilities. I like to think that I have a fairly sophisticated readership--none that wRit3 Lik3 tHis. Ugh.
3. In spite of all the opinions expressed, I can only say, I don't know what Japan was trying to do. I wasn't there. Did Japan find Russia a threat? How could they not? That is one of the reasons why they were in contact with Moscow to try to have them play intermediary between Japan and the US--this had been documented rather conclusively. To have war declared upon them by the Russians--the very people they were reaching out to--had to have shocked them. Yes, the Japanese were stupid. Why should they expect help for the Russians? But that is not the point. I believe Japan was desparately attempting to reach a diplomatic conclusion, as unrealistic and selfish and foolish as it may have been.
4. All decisions made in the White House are political. It is a political institution. As such, showing Russia that the US had the A-Bomb was a way to show off their big American dick. It is a cowboy attitude--I have a bigger gun that you, so don't fuck with me--a dangerous attitude that I hope the current administration doesn't adopt, even if Al Qaeda does the unthinkable. BTW: I think there were some misunderstandings. I do not think Truman is a terrorist. But Truman used the bomb for many reasons, one of which was to defeat Japan with such ferocity that they would have no choice but to surrender. Is that not a way of instilling terror and fear in the Japanese people to force them to quit? The bomb was not used as a diplomatic tool. Likewise, all the experts have suggested that Al Qaeda would use the bomb if they had the means--which they might. Why? To defeat the "devil" and force it out of the Middle East, the holy lands of Islam. The point is that people use or would use such a terrible weapon to FORCE their enemy into submission. Of course, the difference between Truman and bin Laden is hindsight. Truman had none. Bin Laden--and every other world leader today--does. The question is whether the vision is 20/20 or not.
5. I hope that no one is blase or indiferent aobut the use of the bomb on Japan because of what they did in Asia. Yes, the Japanese military and much of its civilian authority did horrendous things. Much of the Japanese population were naively stupid, as well, stuck in a mind set resembling Nazi Germany--we just did what we were told. But does following blindly because you were raised that way, because you didn't know any better make you eligible for atomic annhiliation? Do you think the world would have remained silent had the US dropped the bomb on Germany? Of doubt it. So then, why act indifferently on this issue.
6. But ulitmately, my opinion on the use of the bomb are skewed , because of my direct relationship to it. My mother--who was not a military combatant at 14 years old--was one kilometer from the epicenter. This reality always affects how I view this topic, for good or ill.

Anyway, I will continue the story, "A Bright Light", soon. In it, my mother--whose real name is not Yoshiko, by the way--was convinced that God had helped her survive.