In August of 1945 American forces dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and then Nagasaki. This use of a new and strikingly powerful new weapon brought the fighting in the Pacific theater to an end. Even now, nearly 75 years later there are a multitude of questions about whether or not American should have used this level of destruction agains their Japanese foes.
You will need to make your own decisions about the use of this level of force but there are some things that should be considered:
1. American had been bombing Japan in advance of dropping the atomic bombs. Conventional bombing had been used in both Europe and Asia. Tokyo had been firebombed in March of 1945 leaving up to 100,000 civilians dead and over a million homeless.
2. The full power and effect of the atomic bombs was not known as this was new technology and had not been used as yet in warfare. The debilitating effects of radiation poisoning would not be known until after the bombs had been dropped. You, as a high schooler, likely have more knowledge about the effects of radiation than scientists did in 1945.
3. Americans believed that the Japanese people would fight to the end in defending their nation. Evidence of how Japanese soldiers had already fought in battle and great concerns that there were vast numbers of Japanese soldiers ready to defend their islands led to the belief that using the new bomb would save the lives of millions of American service men.
Here is a brief overview of The Decision to Drop the Bomb from the Truman Library and Museum.
For information from the pilot who dropped the bomb over Hiroshima see Pilot of the Enola Gay Reports.
We have seen the growth of technology between the early part of the 20th century and the end of WWII (think about the weapons that were used in WWI). Consider this question and write a response in the posts below.
With the increase in technological advances that made weapons far more deadly, was there enough thought about the morality and ethics of being able to cause such great destruction?
Respond below where it says "Enter a comment", then click publish.
With the increase in technological advances that made weapons far more deadly, was there enough thought about the morality and ethics of being able to cause such great destruction?
Respond below where it says "Enter a comment", then click publish.
For the people involved with the dropping of the bombs, their only thoughts seemed to be about the American lives that would be lost if the war continued, never about the Japanese lives that would be lost. When the Manhattan project turned out to be a success, Truman was basically handed an end to war. I'm sure it was laid out very simply for him and everyone involved, that if these bombs were dropped, the Japanese would surrender. Not that thousands of Japanese civilians would die, not that hundreds of buildings would be flattened. Just that American soldiers would be spared. No, there was not enough thought about the morality and ethics of dropping the bombs. They only thought about the American lives, and not those of the people they would be killing. Even without the context of deadliness of these weapons, Atomic bombs were a very new technology that we spent a lot of time and money working on, and trying to keep secret. We were proud about our accomplishments, and combined with our thoughtlessness about the destruction of these weapons, it seemed pretty clear to Truman what to do. I'm sure all thoughts about the destruction were pushed aside, the first time they dropped the bomb, and the second. We had tunnel vision that can only be explained by racism, thoughtlessness, pride, and recklessness.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to wars and conflicts, many people don’t consider the possible destruction they could cause. All they think of is winning. So, when a big war breaks out, and a new very deadly weapon is introduced, many people would want to use it. They wouldn’t care about how many deaths they could cause, they only care about having the upper hand. Not enough thought was put into using such strong weapons, and even in times of desperation, you need to think before you act.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if morality was one of the last things people thought about. All most cared about was how fast and "efficiently" they could win the war. Even though the weapons caused mass destruction and great travesties they we consumed in the need to defeat the other side.
ReplyDeleteI feel like it enter there minds but they shook off the feeling because to America, this was revenge and they needed to go bigger with it. They only thought about for only a few minutes because that whole war was filled with destruction so how should this be any different. They probably would not think it would have after effects since they only tested it in deserts with no people. They only knew that it would make a great deal of damage in the second of the bombing.
ReplyDeleteI believe people didn't worry to much about ethics when looking at weaponry. America thought that the Japanese would not surrender and they took this new technology for granted. America was worried about losing their own men rather than losing an entire country. They knew that this new technology was massively destructive, but it gave them the win. They wanted the upper hand, and this caused even more trouble, because now everyone has this deadly technology. It goes to show the lengths that people will go to "win." Once, the bombs were dropped America was most likely celebrating to have won the war and not even looking back at what they had done. These uses of technology show that civilians aren't safe, they became the new target.
ReplyDeleteDuring war, not a lot of thought goes into morality and ethics in general, or at least not during the time of WWII. American soldiers were concerned with American lives more than they were Japanese lives. More thought definitely could have gone into what dropping the atomic bombs meant for the thousands of innocent people in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. I think it is safe to say that, from the American perspective, there would need to be a great deal of destruction to end the war once and for all. While that may have been the case, I can't help but think that there was a better, safer way to go about the whole thing. I guess desperate times really do call for desperate measures.
ReplyDeleteI think during war not to many people thought about the destruction that could have been done because all they really thought about was wanting to win. They were more anxious about their lives and surviving. They really could have put more thought in to the morality and ethics that go into these weapons. America most likely knew that there would be big destructive things happening when using these weapons but they would do whatever to win.
ReplyDeleteI do not think there was enough morality or ethics of being able to cause such great destruction. When Truman dropped the bomb he wanted to end the war and spare American troops, that was good, but he didn't think about how many Japanese civilians would die. With this much power you can cause great destruction and that is dangerous, a lot of peoples lives are at stake. With such power you have to think of every aspect of what you're doing. You have to know what the causes and effects are going to be. Yes, you have to think what's best for you and your country but you have to think, what is ethical? And killing Japanese civilians ultimately is not.
ReplyDeleteDuring the war, I feel as if the main focus is to accomplish winning. Nothing close to caring or having concern for the lives they can take or ruin that have nothing to do with the war conflict just normal people who have got caught in a sticky web of torture. Like when "Tokyo had been firebombed in March of 1945 leaving up to 100,000 civilians dead and over a million homeless." That's a lot of people whose life changed within a small matter of time and forever. The images that they could have seen could be scared for an lifetime, although war is temporary that pain can last forever. Especially when they don't know their day to day they kill just to show a point not caring if they harm people in the process jus making sure they win. Ethics in War in my opinion aren't apart of the drawing board when it comes to war thoughts. With technological advances you can kill large amounts of people with a click of a button. Not worried about all the people that will be hurt but the impact it will make on the leaders so they can win. Its really all about making points and winning in wars
ReplyDeleteWhile I understand that the United States wanted to end the war as quickly as possible, as did many other countries and people, but they acted too quickly and did not consider the losses that the Japanese suffered and would suffer in the future as a result of the bombing of Hiroshima. I also understand that they did not know the full effect of the bombing, such as the radiation, but they knew very well that the bomb that they were about to drop on Hiroshima was one of the most powerful bombs at the time, and most likely had an idea that many people would die, including innocent people and children who had nothing to do with the war, they just happened to be in Japan at the moment. I think that the United States did not think enough about dropping the atomic bomb before actually doing it, and didn't think enough about just the consequences, but also about the morality and power that the bomb had.
ReplyDeleteI think that people didn’t really care a lot about the morality and ethnics in WWII or didn’t think about it. The Americans only cared about their lives than the Japanese lives. Americans were even more concerned about their lives than their own land. Americans had thought that the atomic bomb meant total destruction which meant killing thousands of people in the Nagasaki and the Hiroshima where thousands were vaporized and perished. Americans thought they could have an easy victory and no one gets killed now they have this deadly weapon. In Americans point of view all they care is no one getting killed and winning to be the best without knowing all the destruction they done causing so many deaths. This made me realize that Americans are thoughtless, selfish people who only care about themselves than others whiles others are feeling unsafe now they are a target to a deadly weapon. Here’s something you and Americans should learn “think before you act” which means think before you call a mass destruction.
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone was worried about the morality and ethics of it all. I think the only thing people cared about was if they were going to be able to protect/defend themselves. I think the mindset of each country was more of, "Well they are doing it, so why can't I?' They only thing everyone wanted was to win the war. They look at is as self-defense and what they "had to do", instead of looking at the number of lives lost that they are responsible for.
ReplyDeleteI believe that, during war, ethnics and morality were not an the tip of all American solders minds. The Americans had the mindset, that the Japanese would fight back. They didn't know much about the destruction the atomic bomb would cause. The Americans, most likely saw their new technology, like every other bomb they have dropped on Japan. Even if they had an idea of the damage in would cause, they cared more about the lives of their own, over the land of another. The Americans proved that they would do and kill anyone, if it results by saving their people and land. America wanted to end the war quickly, they got what they wanted. They probably thought that they won, and that they were safe, but now they are Japan's bull's-eye.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they ever really thought about all the destruction they were causing. It was new technological advances so people weren't really familiar with the power of the atomic bombs. They also weren't really worried about what it would cause them because they were thinking about fighting until they won just like what they thought the Japanese would do. They were only thinking about what it would take to win.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if they weren’t thinking about morality or ethics enough and was just focusing on winning the war. They were focusing on doing whatever it takes to keep there soldiers safe. In the end both sides was going to do whatever it takes to win
ReplyDeleteI belive, during war, morality and ethics weren't on all the American solders minds. They were thinking that the Japanese would fight. They didn't know a lot about the destruction the bomb could cause. The Americans, probably saw new technology, as just another bomb they can drop on Japan. Even if they knew of the damages it would cause, they didn't care because they were thinking of themselves, and their land over the another. The Americans demonstrated, they would kill anyone if it resulted in saving their land and people. America needed to finish the war quickly, and they got exactly what they desired.
ReplyDeleteI think when making the weapons they weren't thinking much of ethics and morality and more focused on winning. They only had their solders in mind not anyone else that it would effect.
ReplyDeleteI do not think they were thinking morally or ethically, lives are lives whether it was Japanese or American. So killing neither was ok but America was trying to win the war so they chose to kill the Japanese to save Americans, but no I do not think it was right to use such an unknown powerful weapon which they did not have a full understanding of what it was capable of.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think they were really focused on ethnics during this time of war. And they also thought that Japan was going to fight in the war until they won. So America was ready to use whatever they needed to protect their people. But I don’t think America really knew much about the weapons they were using. When they bombed Japan before they thought that when they bomb them again the weapon will do the same as it did before. They were willing to do whatever it took to keep their people and land safe. But they still are enemies of Japan today.
ReplyDeleteIn the midst of an arms race and with such great technological advancing in military equipment, it is easy to get caught up and not think about the true damage that is being done. I do not think that morality was even considered in many military officers' minds during this time. Their need to beat out the Soviet Union and prove that they are superior led to mass destruction and death of so many innocent people. Both sides were completely consumed by their tunnel vision. The decision to drop the bombs was one that was not very well thought out. While I understand the want to end a war, more destruction will not solve anything, especially that of extremely immoral and unfair actions. The only thing on their mind was winning. There was no evaluation of morals and/or ethics beforehand.
ReplyDeleteI think America did what they thought was the end goal and they accomplished that so they didn't really care about the mortality of the situation because if they didn't come strong against the Japanese then the Japanese would do it for them. Since everyone was being violent it being ethical didn't matter because I don't think anyone else cared for the lives of soldiers and civilians on both sides.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that ethnics crosses their mind during the war. They were just focused are trying to win the war and beat Japan. Everyone thought America wasn’t going to do anything so they wanted to show people that they are going to do something. Honestly I don’t think all the American soldiers were even fully aware of what type of weapons they were using. The Americans were trying to do and use everything in their power to help the war . They didn’t care about how people would feel about their destruction or weapon useage. They were completely focused and I the zone to win the war anyway they could.
ReplyDeleteIf I was to step into America’s point of view I do think they thought ethically when it came to the war just not about their opponents being the Japanese. The Americans were doing anything they could to protect their people and they thought the Japanese would’ve done the same. The Americans were just tying to win. I imagine the Japanese would’ve done as much as they could with the technology they had to protect their people. So in conclusion I believe there was ethical decisions they just weren’t in favor of the Japanese.
ReplyDeleteWhen you're at war ethics must be warped. You must do evil to do good. Think of it like this, going back in time to kill baby Hitler. You would kill him right? But, wait; he's just a baby, are they born evil-- maybe he can be saved. No, you wouldn't kill him? I mean come on he's Hitler. Nothing is ethically right, but you must make a choice based on the greater good, and that is what America had to do. In war you must put your people first.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the U.S.A had any morals for the enemy after they killed 11 Million civilians in the holocaust, and the amount of American solders that would survive the war was too great not to do it. But I believe they should not have done it to the people but they should have droped them on military bases and on government facilitys because what they did was no better than the natiz. So should they have used it yes but where they used it was unacceptable.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that there was enough thought at all. Especially if us high schoolers knew more about radiation than the scientist who built the bomb. Which means that they didn't know what was gonna happen when they dropped it, I mean they most likely had a general idea but still. You don't drop something called an atomic bomb when you don't know about the effects of it. Furthermore it killed people, sure they were people on the opposite team as us, but those civilians, those children are still people. And if you think about all of the wars the U.S is in we don't know that much about them, we just keep livin our lives. And all of those people in japan, were probably in the same boat, they just kept livin their lives. But America took those lives, without putting any sort of thought into it, just if we do this we win. So morality, ethics, they were not even a part of the picture.
ReplyDeleteThe US was not ethical with the bombing. They should have at least researched about the bomb effect before they dropped it. War is never peaceful at all. But this bombing went too far. They could have fought off Japan while they did research on the bomb, to see what it effected.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the Americans put thought into the Japanese well being or what their economy and country would look like after the bombing. The Americans saw the Japanese as a threat and believed that they wouldn't surrender so they did as they pleased. In my opinion what they did wasn't even close to what they should have done. The Americans used a lethal weapon that they hadn't even known was going to work right or not. In the process many innocent lives were lost as well. A lot of people had nothing to do with the government and their politics. Morality and ethics weren't even taken into consideration in this plan.
ReplyDeleteI feel like they thought about it but they didn’t really care at the same time. The Americans were getting revenge and most people were just thinking about winning and and surviving and keeping their own people like the soldiers very safe instead of worrying about the destruction of the war.
ReplyDeleteNo, there wasn’t. I think that the people making these decisions were focusing on America and not the lives of innocent Japanese citizens. Before the atomic bombing America had already taken up to 100,000 lives and leaving over a million homeless. So when they decided to bomb Japan with even more intense bombs they were thinking about winning the war and nothing else in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteWhen fighting a war the people tend only respond to their country and its leader. They don’t see the problem in bombing cities full of innocent people. They are taught that this is the right thing to do because they don’t know any better or they just don’t really care. And when it comes to fighting in a war the nations do what is best for themselves and their people others don’t matter, they want to win.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing the Americans truly thought about was saving our country and destroying the Japanese soldiers. However, many of the civilians lives were at stake including infants and children. When people go to war they are told to fight for their country and to sometimes stop at nothing to win their war. So, no there was no ethical thought that went into the dropping of the atomic bombs. they knew it would do damage they just didn't know how much, but they didn't seem to care.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't thought out enough because after that we have had countries trying to compete to have the bigger and better bomb. The more they compete and create more bombs the more deadly and a risk there is. Morality and ethics was at the bottom of their worries, they just wanted to win.
ReplyDeleteWhen there is a war the people fighting in it seem to not care about the young innocent people, families. They’re blowing up the whole country. They aren’t thinking about the humanity of the people who lives there. They’re are newborns not being able to see the light in day because it’s so much smoke and materials in the air. Children not being able to go to school. Adult not being about to work and they can’t fend to their families. They people in the military seem to only care about wining and killing the leader and not everyone else in the country.
ReplyDeleteAugust 6, 1945 is the day when a mark was left on American history A day filled with victory and triumph, as well as, fear and defeat. An atomic bomb was dropped on two cities in Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki ending the war. Innocence perished as victory rose. Protestors known as Hibakusha marched the streets of Japan, not to end war but show what was left of innocence that has been destroyed. Leaving us with the question, “Was this bomb morally wrong? Was it necessary?” Japan spoke out as President Truman stated his truth. Does the test and experimentation of science excuse the consequences made by this bomb? The atomic bomb was morally wrong but was necessary to end the World War quickly.
ReplyDeletePresident Truman announced it was a go. The bomb was launched mid-day while it was foggy and raining out. He chose this climate as to contain the destruction of the bomb. The bomb was targeted not at the civilians of these two cities. The two bombs hit Hiroshima and Nagasaki. An estimate of 150,000 were killed and/or wounded in Hiroshima and 75,000 in Nagasaki. It is still not clear how many more people died from the chemicals and radiation after the bomb.
Many victories and losses came into effect after the bomb. A group called the Hibakusha, victims and survivors of the atomic bomb, spoke out about the tragedies of the bomb. This news spread around the world many in debate of whether or not we made the correct decision. Many felt it was a victory because Japan surrendered the war and America and the allies won the war, many others felt it was a day to mourn for all the innocent lives that were destroyed.
President Truman himself states, “This bomb was the most terrible bomb in the world.” killing thousands. The next question to ask is, was it necessary? Truman had four options, to continue conventional bombing of Japanese cities, invade Japan, demonstrate the bomb on an unpopulated island, or drop the bomb on an inhabited Japanese city. If he decided to continue conventional bombing of Japanese cities or invade Japan this could have had a result of thousands of Americans and American soldiers losing their lives. If he chose to demonstrate the bomb on an unpopulated island this would only threaten Japan which did not guarantee an end to war and may have caused Japan to come back to us in full force. Using the bomb on Japan will cost innocent people’s lives, but the war had a high potential to end and American lives wouldn’t be destroyed. Reflecting on Truman’s four considerations he was left with the fact that thousands of lives were going to be taken. As the American president it was his obligation to protect the citizens of the United States. There was no ideal solution.
Another question to be asked is does the development of new technology “delink” human connection to each other. Some defend the use of the atomic bomb as a science experiment in the development of new technology, saying that the death of thousands of innocent people is just a result of the consequences from the experimentation of the bomb. These consequences of killing and wounding over thousands of people is unjustifiable. How we choose to experiment and look at potential consequences is by choice. Basil Fernando, author for Hong Kong Free Press writes, “See how a pilot can push a button knowing that in an instant hundreds of thousands of people will perish as a result of this action.” Technology advances are putting a barrier between human beings, making it easier to dehumanize death.
To conclude, this incident of the use of the atomic bomb was morally wrong but seen as a necessary strategy to end the world war. There were many positive and negative affects after the use of the atomic bomb. Truman was given an ultimatum of whether or not to use the bomb, and if we use the bomb where would the target be. Whether the experimentation of new technology is a justifiable reason for using the bomb on these two cities. It is undeniably certain that this bomb was morally wrong, but uncertain of what another solution could have been.
Very interested on what source you got your answer from.
DeleteHere are just a few:
Deletehttps://hongkongfp.com/2015/08/17/the-world-must-openly-admit-that-the-atomic-bombing-of-japan-was-the-morally-wrong-thing-to-do/
https://www.nps.gov/articles/trumanatomicbomb.htm
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1995/07/was-it-right/376364/
I believe that the Americans should have taken more time to think about the moral consequences of using these weapons on cities. I don't believe that they thought about morals when it came to making the decision on if they should bomb cities. I believe that all they thought about was trying be a better country than Japan. They didn't think about all the people who they would hurt and how those citizens would loose everything.
ReplyDeleteWith the increase in technological advances that made weapons far more deadly, there was not enough thought about the morality and ethics that would cause more destruction because their main goal was to destroy the other opponent. Disregarding the aftermath. Even though they should've taken more time to think about the problems that it could cause, they unfortunately didn't.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think the Americans were thinking about the damages they could cause because they were more focused on winning they didn’t care about mortality or ethics none of that.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that the Americans put enough thought about morality and ethics before they dropped the bomb. With this new technology and no time or way to test this kind of bomb, I do not think it was morally correct to just drop this insanely destructive bomb on Japan. I see America's perspective of the situation though. They were just trying to save more American lives, but it is not ethical to put other lives in danger to save lives. Especially since a huge amount of lives were lost. The Americans thought that it was for the best because they know the way that the Japanese fight. No matter what, the Japanese would not give up. They saw this bomb as the only solution, and did not think it through completely before they dropped it.
ReplyDeleteI feel that it could've been way more thought with the morality and ethics. I feel Japan was more focused on the was and the destructive bombing. Americans were trying to have the better way in the situation with the destruction.
ReplyDeleteHonestly given America past and present we will do whatever it takes to win. We never had ethics to begin with. So why would have ethics in war america thinks about there self's before thinking about others. Even though they didn't know how much damage it could cause I feel like they knew it could cause something big and dangerous. Also I feel like they didn't think about ethics because America was spending money that we probably didn't have in the first place.
ReplyDeleteThey weren't thinking much about ethics, I feel that they only thought about their soldiers.
ReplyDeleteI do not think they were considering ethics and morals when dropping the atomic bombs on the people of Japan. After one of their bomb attacks, 100,000 civilians died and over a million became homeless. Even after devastating Japan and innocent civilians once, they continued to attack, because they were more concerned about efficiency.
ReplyDeleteI don't think ethics and morals were considered because when they dropped the bombs, they didn't consider the lives of all the innocent citizens. Although it was to help the American soldiers, they still caused mass destruction for Japanese people.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they were thinking about morals and ethics while dropping the nuclear bombs on the individuals of Japan. After one of their bomb assaults, 100,000 regular people kicked the bucket and over a mill we’re robbed of their homes. Much in the wake of obliterating Japan and devastating innocent civilian lives, they kept on assaulting, on the grounds that they were increasingly worried about productivity.
ReplyDeleteI don't think America was thinking about morals because as the article say many people were tired of war and were kind of tired of war. the Americans were aware of what they were doing and they just decided it would be better if they just showed the world and japan how much power they possessed so they used the bomb even though they new the consequences of their decision. when japan didn't want to give up the first time the world just how ruthless and powerful America was.
ReplyDeleteNo there was not enough thought put into the morality and ethics of being able to cause such great destruction because they killed over to 100,000 civilians and left over a million homeless Innocent people in tokyo. Their actions also caused destruction to our earth by detonating materials that will effect our earth for several decades after its use and the end of war. The bombing was not well thought out at all. All the bomb did was kill others and not any of the war preparing grouds or supplies units.
ReplyDeleteThe weapons used in world war 1 were flamethrowers, mortars, artillery, poison gas, tanks and aircraft, which were way less deadly than the atomic bombs, Mk 2 Grenade, Avro Lancaster Bomber, the M1 Garand Rifle and T-34 Tank of world war II.The difference in world 1 weapons and world 2 weapons were that world war 2 were more deadly. The atomic bomb is made of highly-enriched uranium-235 and plutonium-239.
No, because when there is situations like this; a nuclear war, nation leaders usually don't care about the lives of the other nation's people. They also use the death and destruction of that other nation to make that nation surrender and give up. These were the main tactics of war used by America and Japan. Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and killed innocent lives with no empathy/sympathy.
ReplyDeleteJ. Robert Oppenheimer is a great example of lack of thought when killing innocent lives. Oppenheimer was a chemist, and created the atomic bomb to fire back at Japan for attacking America. When Oppenheimer dropped the bomb on Japan, many other innocent Japanese lives were taken. Oppenheimer didn't think about the lives of innocent Japanese families and children, and regretted making that mistake. So in a sense most national leaders were like this and didn't put much thought into how much damage it would do to other helpless innocent people.
No there was not enough thought about morals and ethics then America decided to drop the atomic bomb. They hadn't considered the damage a new type of bomb would inflict, and they'd already raided Japan countless times anyway. Thinking that Japan would prolong the war by fighting to the death, the weary Americans decided that the only way to end it once and for all was sheer firepower.
ReplyDeleteThe Americans believed that bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki would save lives. Lives of soldiers however. Soldiers are almost signing their own death warrant by entering war. Innocent civiliians, a quarter of a million of them, were not. The pilot of the Enola Gay, Tibbets, recalls that seeing the effect of the bomb was sobering. He also recalls that he was just doing his job; his superiors hadn't known let alone told him the sheer amount of damage the bomb would inflict.
The Americans really only had one thing on their minds: ending the war by any means necessary. At the point those bombs were dropped, a threshold was crossed. One that said diplomatic dominance was more important than sparing hundreds of thousands of innocents.
No people were not thinking about the ethics they were just concerned about being on top they wanted a handTo win even if it meant total destruction of even their own territory. They did not take in to consideration how it effective the people or even how it affected themselves. You’re so desperate to win they were willing to do anything
ReplyDeleteThe Americans involved did not care about ethics or morals, at the time they just cared about winning by any means necessary. The didn't think of the consequences that japan would face after these atomic bombs destroyed their cities. They didn't take into any consideration of how these bombs would effect the people of Japan. These innocent lives were taken just because of the Americans being desperate for power.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to war the people are fighting for a cause they truly believe in. Whether that be to conquer, avenge or simply just destroy the people involved usually believed that the ends justify the means. People are willing to do whatever it takes to win and worrying about the aftershock of the destruction and innocent lives that would be taken is not a priority on the leader’s minds. Another reason the destruction and body counts were growing so high is because of the evergoing arms race that the world is in. The need to be the best and stay on top is on leader’s minds and if that means dropping a bomb on civilians and justifying it by saying it had to be done to win the war is moral then stepping on puppies must be ok too. I don’t think anyone who would do that has any moral code and no empathy for others.
ReplyDeleteI posted this Monday but I don't see it in the thread.
ReplyDeletePresident Truman was thinking about saving American lives and ending the wat. He knew showing Japan an example of what the bombs could do would not be enough to get Japan to surrender and stop killing Americans. The US was at war with Japan and the rest of the Axis powers, who were committing atrocities. The decision to drop the bomb was the hardest decision of Truman’s life. He had to come up with a strategic way to win the war against Japan. I think the ideas of morals and ethics are considered when you look at the big picture for the greater good.
I believe there was not enough thought put into the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bomb itself could cause so much unknown damage, and this was just to stop a war which could be stopped in other ways. Two bombs was much unnecessary, and even one was damaging beyond belief. The damage included breaking up families, killing children, leaving kids orphans, leaving parents childless, destroying homes, and killing entire families. The morality in killing even one person is skewed, but thousands to millions is unexplainable.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not. I think technology had absolutely changed our lives but not necessarily for the best. And with technology only advancing over time who's to say what destruction and chaos could be caused by these advancements. President Truman was only concerned with his own people and not how these bombs would effect peoples lives or our future. He wasn't exactly concerned with the morals when it came to fighting against japan.
ReplyDeleteDuring the war there was not enough thought about the weapons bring able to cause such destruction because Truman’s only concern was bring the war to an end because the number of American casualties was high so no there was enough thought about ethics and morality because there was no concern for the Japanese lives.
ReplyDeleteWhile the war was happening, the number of American soldiers dying was very high, and Japan took part in that number tremendously. Because of Japan doing this, Truman decided that they needed to find a way to triumph over the Japanese soldiers, and in order to do that, deadlier weapons had to be made to stop them. These technological advances had both pros and cons, including the fact that the mortality ate would be higher if these weapons were used. I believe that they wanted to win over wanting to care for the citizens.
ReplyDeleteIn the war, the last thing that was thought about was morality. The U.S. needed to find a way to win the war efficiently and preserve the lives of their citizens. When creating those weapons, they wanted to drop huge blows to Japan so they would eventually surrender. In that, the U.S. made extremely powerful weapons so that Japan wouldn’t dare to counterattack. In that state of mind, the impact those weapons had on Japanese lives weren’t even thought of in a serious light.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it is very easy to get caught up in war, and not think about the long-term effects. No, I don't think that the Americans and the Japanese were thinking much about the morals of the people. I think there was not enough thought put forward to the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Sure, technology has had some good things to come out of it, but this was not one of them.
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't think that they were thinking about morality. I feel as if they just focused on destroying and winning the war, and technology has a lot to offer and plenty of good things can be put on the table along with plenty of bad things and I think this was one of the bad things.
ReplyDeleteAmerica was not in the wrong at all because if you think about it Japan got so many warnings from the US that when they actually got the first bomb dropped on them no one was surprised but they survived and kept on push them to dropping the second bomb so japan got what they deserved
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to war, if the weapon is deadly enough people will do whatever they deem necessary- Even if it includes lack or moral or ethics. And it's always been like that, either side only care about how THEY'LL make it out alive and how it'll affect them, not the other side.
ReplyDeleteI do not think about they were thinking about morality. They were just focused on winning the war and terminating their opponents.They were not thinking about the after effects to dropping these huge bombs.
ReplyDeleteMaybe a small thought about ethics and morality the government doesn't allow certain things in war but still most lives lost are citizen lives so I don't think they really care about anything besides winning.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that they kept morality in mind when making these decisions. I still believe their decision was educationally made, just with the information that they had at the time. Both Japan and America suffered many casualties and i think since Truman's top priority was to end the war and this was the way that (available to them) seemed like the best solution to go with.
ReplyDeleteWhen wad is about and different counties are doing anything to beat one another, the thoughts that someone who is completely innocent could get hurt go straight out the window. Sometimes people lose there sense of what to do when it comes to war. However even if they do know what to do, they choose the wrong action just to have a slight chance of winning over their opponent, even if it comes with the cost of losing innocent lives who had no part in the war to begin with and were sacrificed all in the name of war.
ReplyDeleteI feel that overall there was more concern in the safety of American lives when it came to the decision of dropping the separate bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But it isn't too much of a surprise knowing that we as a nation put our people first. Personally, I highly disagree with Truman's decision, and if I were in his shoes I would have also considered the well-being of the innocent people who ended up losing their lives to these tragic events, but in war you must be quick to make decisions. Ultimately, he did what he thought was right for America.
ReplyDeleteThere definitely wasn't enough thought about the destruction that would be caused. With there being 100,000 civilians dead and over a million homeless, it's very clear that that wasn't what Americans were thinking of. They wanted to protect their people just incase worst could happen, not thinking of all of the innocent people they would hurt as a result.
ReplyDeleteI feel when it comes to things like this, there is not much thought put into it at all. When it comes to these things people only think how it will effect them and the good it could do for them but, not the innocent people that could quite possibly be effected too.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think people brought in morality and ethics into their technological advances because the only reason the US dropped the nuclear bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima was to show their power to Russia. They were not thinking of all the innocent people they erased, or how this would effect them to this day and how they feel or felt about the US.
ReplyDeleteI believe the morals and ethics weren't considered at the time of the bombing of the two cities, only power and economics.
ReplyDeleteIf a person with a clear conscience would have know that the Japanese citizens, had absolutely no say in their militaries affairs. And they would have tried to win the war in a less aggressive way. Just 300,000 civilian lives were taken in those unfortunate bombings, and those 300,000 lives could have been saved if morals and ethics were included in the mind process of what to do in defending America.
I don’t believe there was a lot of thought in general about dropping the atomic bombs in Japan. Truman was just thinking about wanting a quick solution to stop the war, without considering the catastrophic effects. Nobody had properly researched the kind of damage the atomic bombs could cause, and so Japan was at a severe medical disadvantage for treating patients with radiation sickness. The radiation sickness caused more deaths than the impact of the bomb did. This carelessness of knowing the weapon Truman was detonating went hand in hand with his lack of morality and ethics considering Japanese lives. He might not have known the destruction the atomic bomb would cause, but he still bombed Japan twice in two major cities. This destruction was not necessary whatsoever and probably caused more death than prolonging the war would have caused.
ReplyDeleteI definetly dont think the Americans had much knowledge on how much damage and destruction the weapons would cause. It was morally and ethnically crushing and cruel to intentionally almost wipe out the entire Japanese group. I see the passion and hunger of winning a battle or proving a point but this is over board. Very inhumane to cause so much destruction. Nobody was prepared for the impact it seems like. Knowing that the Japanese wasnt nearly as prepared, I felt that it was just heartless to continuously go with the plan of defeating them in such a stone cold way. This wasnt just ending a war it was damaging the world's future.
ReplyDeleteWith the increase in technological advances that made weapons far more deadly, there was not enough thought about the morality and ethics of being able to cause such great destruction. So much destruction and death is never necessary. They definitely didn't see anything wrong with it since they bombed Japan a SECOND time.
ReplyDeleteI think with the weapons, people stopped focusing the innocents they had killed/ harmed, but rather the harm that was done to themselves.
ReplyDeleteWith increased technological advances the Japanese were more dangerous because their bombs could explode a lot more things. Also the fact that the Japanese had a mind set that they were gonna die for their country didn't help the situation either.
ReplyDeleteI believe the consideration of the weapons were thought about in a more negative way. I believe the only thought that was put into the weapons were winning, mortality, amount of people this weapon can kill,etc. All the negative things when it came to weapons. I don't believe ethics and mortality were viewed in a positive way. I believe America thought their advanced weapons were powerful enough to get rid of the Japanese if they won't back down. I don't think they thought about how people would be affected. I feel that it was more of a "We just want to win" type of ordeal.
ReplyDeleteAs a result, their development can make the use of force more likely even Disruptive technologies, even when developed with the best of side of one's moral commitments as well as undermining the cause for which one fights. Refer to military systems that include both lethal autonomous weapons that kill.
ReplyDeleteMany types of technology were customized for military use, and major developments occurred across several fields including: Weaponry: ships, vehicles, submarines, aircraft, tanks, artillery, small arms; and biological, chemical, and atomic weapons.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe during this time of war they were particularly concentrated on the ethnics. And they even felt that up until they conquered Japan should participate in the war. But America was able to do whatever it took to defend its people. Still I don't think America really learned a lot about the guns they used. When they bombed Japan before they thought that when they bomb them again the weapon will do the same as it did before. They were willing to do whatever it took to keep their people and land safe.
ReplyDeleteI think they really didn’t think about the people’s lives they were destroying just by having one weapon because they were so concentrated on winning they barely thought about how many people they were killing in the process and I think if they really did they would all stop fighting even if it goes against everything
ReplyDeleteSpeaking on this matter I have mixed feeling about all of it. I feel as the U.S did have consideration while making the decisions. The articles did state that America told japan to surrender and to just make peace but our friend japan wanted to be stubborn. IT also stated that the atomic bomb was the last resort but they really kind of didn't have a choice if you think about it. Cause as I stated before the U.S did warn them and gave them chance after chance to surrender of make peace but japan was stubborn and the tiny bombs we dropped to scare them into backing out Cleary did not work. SO as I feel that Japan bring it on themselves, I also feel that America shouldn't have dropped that specific bomb. I can say that America should not have dropped an unused unknow untested bomb. WE dropped a bomb we have never used before we don't even know how much damage the bomb can cause. SO as I feel japan brought it on themselves the U.S shouldn't of dropped an new unused bomb not knowing the damages.
ReplyDeleteNo, there was not enough thought about the morality and ethics of dropping the bombs. Sometimes people lose there sense of what to do when it comes to war. President Truman knew showing Japan an example of what the bombs could do would not be enough to get Japan to surrender and stop killing Americans.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there was because they were just thinking about how they could win the war. Also since the bombs weren't used too much before, they didn't have a good idea of how much destruction that they could really cause. I think maybe until later how much destruction that they did cause, they then realized that they might've used something a little less deadly. I think they just wanted to win the war while they were in the moment, but I don't think they particularly added too much thought to it.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to war the last thing people who are fighting and participating in the war think about is the destruction they cause unless it's the destruction and mortality of their enemies. The main focus of war is to win and when trying to win the war the last thing to think about is the damage it caused afterwards.
ReplyDeleteI think that there definitely was not enough thought put into the decision to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The people who made that decision seemed to only be thinking about AMERICAN lives. Their reasoning was that it would save the lives of American and Japanese soldiers. That by killing thousands of innocents, they could bring about the end of the war. While it is not known what the outcome would have been if America had not bombed them, (how many more battles would have been fought and lives lost) I do not think that it was the right choice to bomb two innocent cities. It seems almost cowardly, because when we did that, we thought our lives more important than the Japanese's.
ReplyDeleteNo, there was not enough thought about the morality or ethics of the great destruction. Because Truman didn't fully test it out with Japan watching. I feel as if he should've showed then they would've surrendered because they don't want their civilians dying. He caused pain to innocent bystanders that lasted for decades.
ReplyDeleteNo, there was not a enough thought being put into the morality of people because we were not looking at how much it would effect and destroy. it in the end it would not be a win for anybody and it would harm innocent people. the main focus should be protecting the people me and not putting them in harms way
ReplyDeleteNo, there was not enough thought put into destroying the morality of people because I don't think they knew how much it would effect where they were bombing. The only reason they should be using weapons like this is to defend themselves and I feel like they took it too far.
ReplyDeleteNo, while the increase in technological advances that made weapons far more deadly, there was no thought about the morality and ethics of being able to cause such great destruction. Because, while they were in the end of World War II and the beginning of the an Atomic Age the American's saw no remorse of killing thousands of innocent bystanders in the times of war. Mostly because if a hundred to a thousand to a hundred thousand lives is what it takes to win the war then that is what it will take it's every country for itself in the times of war.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the Americans put enough thought about morality and ethics before they dropped the bomb. With new technology and no way to test this kind of bomb, I do not think it was correct to just drop this huge destructive bomb on Japan. I do see America's perspective on the situation though. They just were trying to save more American lives, but it isn't right to put other lives in danger to save lives.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think there was enough thought about morality or ethics, or I think that winning the war might have been more important to America than mass destruction. I also think that because America was testing the bomb with people like Einstein, they must have had some idea of the consequences.
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