north korea launching missle

[dong20]

Nagasaki and Hiroshima were major war industry centers. Both cities were major steel and warship production centers. This is why they were chosen.

.... Truman saw it as his duty to preserve as many American lives as possible and end the war as soon as possible.

I agree with you, yes they were, and yes he did.

But let's also acknowledge the opportunity they presented to test the weapons and their effects in theatre. I'm not suggesting this was the primary factor, but it was certainly a factor, among many.

I add this observation merely for completeness; so a reader wouldn't be under any [mis]understanding that reducing US military casualties was the only consideration, as [were it taken at face value] your disabusing of another's take on the event would suggest. Of course you may disagree, which is course your prerogative.

I also agree that such ill-informed anti-American rhetoric is tiresome, but equally so is the tired refrain 'well America saved the world countless times under the banner of freedom - so all you peons [read non US citizens] should just stop whining and be grateful'. Both perspectives stem from positions of ignorance, and/or simple predjudice.

Anyone with half a brain and/or a passing familiarity with 20th century history must acknowledge the immense contributions and sacrifices made by America[ns], but for a fuller understanding these must be viewed in their proper context. Besides, other nations and peoples made proportionally equal or greater sacrifices, often unwillingly.

When seeking to understand the motivations behind US interventions [both overt and covert] one must also consider subsequent events. Few (if any) nations act out of pure altruism, the US is no exception. Globally, US influence has been arguably the most significant not because it's fundamentally imperialistitic (as some would argue) nor aggressive, but primarily because its vast rescourses have afforded it the most reach.

Had it had not been the US, then for better or worse, another would have stepped to the plate - a key point lost on far too many. The former Soviet Union was at least as insidious and far more openly aggressive. Together for much of the latter half of the century, the US and USSR used vast swathes of the world as their chessboard - with the pawns being real people and countries.

Today, China is in ascendency, quite possibly and perhaps not that far from now it may supplant the US as 'top dog'. If and when that happens, I fully expect much of this whining to be redirected - and unless China undergoes an ideological enlightenment - it may find a target rather less tolerant of such dissent - even if such intolerance is by proxy.

In short, many people simply want someone to blame, someone to be the 'villain' and the target really doesn't matter. Choosing a nation is convenient because it's impersonal and if retaliation results it offers a handy 'present company excepted' defence.

I wish more here would think before they type.

 

[2322]

A really quick note here as I'm feeling a bit under the weather today.

Yes, the bombs being tested in actual war situation was a consideration, but it was not the ultimate one. Truman privately agonized over dropping the bombs because of their enormous and indiscriminate destructive power. He believed he might be risking his soul by ordering such an attack, yet determined that the good of the country and the safety, such as he could provide, for American lives, was more important than what happened to him in any possible afterlife. He was never entirely comfortable that he had made the right choice and it haunted him the rest of his life.