The Hiroshima Bomb

Was Truman right to drop the bomb on Hiroshima?

Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the 33rd President of the United States.

During World War I, Truman served in combat in France as an artillery officer in his National Guard unit.

Supporters of Truman argue that it saved American lives that would have been lost in an invasion. In 1954, Eleanor Roosevelt said that Truman had "made the only decision he could," and that the bomb was necessary "to avoid tremendous sacrifice of American lives."

What was the bomb?

The Mk I bomb, nicknamed "Little Boy," was the first nuclear weapon used in warfare.

Little Boy had a 14.5-kiloton yield (equal to 14,500 tons of TNT)

Even though it wasn't very efficient it caused a lot of damage . . . .

So why did Truman Do it?

At the time, few questioned Truman's decision to drop atomic bombs. Most Americans accepted the reasoning that the bombings brought the war to a timely end.

Over one hundred thousand of the enemy were killed; however, Japan had attacked America.

Truman could have chosen another way to compel a Japanese surrender without bombing two cities. The most obvious alternative is an American invasion of Japan. The Americans planned to invade Kyushu if an atomic bomb were not available by late October.

1. Use them in the manner that is from the military point of view most effective in bringing about prompt Japanese surrender at minimum human cost to our armed forces.

2. Give a military demonstration in Japan to be followed by renewed opportunity for surrender before full use of the weapons is employed.

3. Give an experimental demonstration in this country, with representatives of Japan present; followed by a new opportunity for surrender before full use of the weapon is employed.

4. Withold military use of the weapons, but make public experimental demonstration of their effectiveness.

5. Maintain as secret as possible all developments of our new weapons and refrain from using them in this war.

Actual survey of scientists working on the bomb:

1. Use them in the manner that is from the military point of view most effective in bringing about prompt Japanese surrender at minimum human cost to our armed forces.

2. Give a military demonstration in Japan to be followed by renewed opportunity for surrender before full use of the weapons is employed.

3. Give an experimental demonstration in this country, with representatives of Japan present; followed by a new opportunity for surrender before full use of the weapon is employed.

4. Withold military use of the weapons, but make public experimental demonstration of their effectiveness.

5. Maintain as secret as possible all developments of our new weapons and refrain from using them in this war.

15% voted for option #1; 46% for option #2; 26% option #3; 11% option #4; and 2% option #5.

Decision To The Use Atomic Bomb by Gar Alperovitz, p. 189

Which of the following five procedures comes closest to your choice as to the way in which any new weapons that we may develop should be used in the Japanese war?

Who was Truman?

Should more American soldiers have died? Or, should Truman deploy the devastation of an atomic bomb and end the war? What do you think?

Truman's Options

1. Wait for the Soviets to enter the war

2. Invade Japan

3. Deploy bomb