Thursday, May 19, 2016

We Don't Owe Japan An Apology For Using Atomic Weapons

I see from a news story from the AFP that "[v]ictims of the atomic bombings of Japan want an apology from US President Barack Obama when he visits Hiroshima next week, the head of a survivors' group said Thursday."

We don't owe them an apology because using the atomic bombs was the most humane option open to the United States. As Bill Whittle points out in the video embedded below, the use of the atomic bombs was militarily necessary, especially in light of the millions of estimated casualties (both Allied and Japanese) if the islands had to be invaded--fighting that would have gone on for years. Certainly, the Japanese government was not ready to surrender and resistance from the Japanese people would have been immense. Moreover, in both cases, the populace was warned (via dropping of leaflets) of the attack and given time to evacuate.

If the Japanese "victims" want an apology, they should look to their own government to apologize for having involved them in a war they could not win. By using the bombs we brought an early end to the war and saved millions of lives and many additional years of suffering that an invasion would have required. And that is not something that can be ignored.


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