Minor technicality, but only 105,000 Japs were killed. 66,000 at Hiroshima and 39,000 at Nagasaki. And those attacks managed to destroy all military and strategic targets of importance in both cities. It just so happened that 105,000 civilians lived around these military and strategic targets. They chose to do so, they could have lived further away from military targets if they wished to.
105,000 dead civilians was also less than the number of civilians who would have died if Japan had to be defeated through invasion alone. Based on the number of civilians who died during the invasion of Okinawa, the southermost island of Japan, if battles had to be fought through populated Japanese cities then millions of civilians would be killed in the crossfire.
I normally don’t try and justify things that the USA do, but as an advocate of strategic nuclear warfare I will always justify the bombing of Hiroshima and nagasaki.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
^ They just happened to be living there did they? :halo: Jeez these 105,000 civilians must be real dumb not to realise they were a military target, that too, strategically. I dunn get it, did these dumbnuts not get the flyers telling them they were targets to be? silly ppl or what.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
That is my point MS
Sometimes violence is the only way to end more violence. US did what they had to end a war, which could have killed millions more. I am not justifying what Chechen did in Russia but innocent people die in struggle for freedom.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
I’ll start a new threat later tonight to discuss the ethics of strategic nuclear warfare. My position: It’s ethical to obliterate a city to guarantee the neutralisation of key facilities therein at minimal risk to the attacker.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
I agree, I kinda got carried away. But I still think death toll was around quarter of a million due to longterm biological, and physical effects on the cities and people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki even long after August 6 1945.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
It’s the Roosevelt logic. Killing all those civilians prevented more from dying by forcing a quick end to the war, as well as denying the enemy the use of the military and strategic facilities in 2 cities.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki were picked precisely because out of all the target cities, they held the greatest military significance. Out of all the cities with key military industries, they were the leading 2 that had not been previously carpet bombed.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
MS, my problem is with your position, it being that "it's ethical to obliterate a city to guarantee the neutralisation of key facilities there in at minimal risk to the attacker"
Your position is much different then the Roosevelt logic you state above. Your position is a reckless and dangerous one that could be cited for almost any military action.
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
Valid point about being the Truman doctrine, given how Roosevelt's term as President ended in 1945 before the bombs were dropped . But then you explain the logic as you understand it....
Re: Russia murders the last freely elected Chechan president
Roosevelt was the one who gave the green light on paper for foreign intervention when world affairs got ill and the world sat idly by. As for Truman, he doesn't start wars, he just finishes them.
:k: