Originally posted by: ADigitalMan
As we look at history, the dropping of the bomb on Hiroshima remains justified, as the massive death was still paltry compared to the amount of death that would have been caused by a protracted invasion of Japan. Sometimes violence is supported by bean counting. Doesn't mean we will rest easy with the thought, and it doesn't mean the afterlife will be any kinder to us for making those kinds of decisions, but this is perhaps the ultimate example that answers the question.
As we look at history, the dropping of the bomb on Hiroshima remains justified, as the massive death was still paltry compared to the amount of death that would have been caused by a protracted invasion of Japan. Sometimes violence is supported by bean counting. Doesn't mean we will rest easy with the thought, and it doesn't mean the afterlife will be any kinder to us for making those kinds of decisions, but this is perhaps the ultimate example that answers the question.
Wow ADM, you're scaring me lately!
We're in a golden age of agreement!I had a neighbor quite a while ago who was among the "on the ground" troops who went to Nagasaki (I believe) shortly after the surrender. He had terrible pain in his joints from the exposure and he saw it first hand.
I can't even imagine how terrible it was, but I too believe it was necessary to bring about a faster end to the war, especially considering that the Japanese military was arming women and children for the invasion of the mainland.
Where I believe we may differ is that it is my opinion, that in order to preserve peace we must always be prepared for war. We must maintain the strongest military on the planet (they must train for war, not dig ditches in Lousiana), and sadly must keep terrible, terrible weapons at our disposal. But as the eagle emblem shows, we must have the arrow in one talon, and an olive branch in the other.