Atomic Bomb Position Paper

Atomic Bomb Position Paper

Was the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki necessary? No, it was not. Neither of the two cities were military targets. Both cities had more civilians than troops. This would also mean that we broke the rules of war. We bombed innocent civilians. This, according to multiple documents of war, is illegal. Especially since the towns had no means of defending themselves. Bombing these towns also started the Cold war arms race. Everyone wanted the atomic bomb. I believe that the dropping the 2 bombs was not necessary because we killed innocent civilians, we started an arms race, and we ended a war that was already on the verge of ending itself.

According to the Hague 2, the bombing of cities or towns that are not defended, and using a weapon to cause superfluous injury is prohibited during war. So, why did we drop the bombs then? We targeted innocent Japanese civilians for no absolute reason. Civilians outnumbered troops in both cities 5:1, therefore forfeiting them both as military targets. The 200,000 killed at both sites were not the only sufferers. The ones who survived had to live with serious defects, such as keloids, or several different diseases.

The cold war arms race was not sprung out of nowhere. It was due to the simple “domino” effect. We used the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, so Russia wanted it as well. They saw the destructive force of a $2,000,000,000 bomb, and realized that the United States could use it on them. This, in turn, caused the Cold War. The race to build a better, more chaotic bomb, went to the point of war and hatred. This was all linked to the first droppings of the A-bombs. It is my firm belief that the bombs dropped forcefully on the Japanese caused the United States of America to end one war, but start another.

By then end of the war, the United States had already destroyed 60 Japanese cities, and killed over 75% of it’s troops. The Japanese were also running out of supplies. This combined with low morale, indicated that the island nation of Japan was ready to throw in the towel. "It was my belief that Japan was, at that very moment, seeking some way to surrender with a minimum loss of 'face'. The Secretary was deeply perturbed by my attitude..."(Secretary