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Why Did President Truman's Decision To Use The Atomic Bomb

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The United States killed and or injured roughly two hundred thousand men, women, and children in early August of 1945. After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1945, the United States entered World War II. The United States was working on a secret project, the Manhattan Project, dealing with nuclear weapons. The United States was not the only country trying to create an atomic bomb at the time, Germany was researching it as well. After Roosevelt died, Truman was put in charge of the atomic bomb project, and was left with the decision to drop it. Once Truman decided to drop the bombs, he needed to decide which cities to target based on military importance. Truman decided to treat the Japanese the same way they treated the United States …show more content…

He saw the bomb as a way to end the war and save lives by avoiding a costly invasion (Smithsonian 56). He was worried that getting caught up in an invasion would have caused the United States to lose many more troops. An invasion would show the United States was not giving up without a fight, it also would have made the death toll rise. If Truman did use the atomic bomb instead of invading, the American death toll would be much smaller, however the Japanese death toll would skyrocket, especially that of innocent people. Historians believe Truman did not decide to use the atomic bomb to solely finish off Japan, but to show the Soviet Union how powerful the United States really was (Thomas and Elliott). People agree with this theory because Truman did not share any of his personal journals. If he was just trying to finish off Japan, why was he being so secretive with the information (Alperovitz 562)? People also believe his decision was based on revenge. Truman said “ The Japanese began the war from the air at Pearl Harbor. They have been repaid many fold” (United States Congress). Truman told officials on July 31, 1945 to go ahead and drop the bomb on Hiroshima as soon as weather permitted after August 2, 1945 (Thomas and …show more content…

American citizens supported the bombings until the details emerged. They supported the decision more because they still had Pearl Harbor on their minds. They did not know the effects of the bombs before they were dropped, but as they heard the news from Japan, Americans changed their views on the subject (Thomas and Elliott). Americans heard the whole city was destroyed and if people survived the blast and shock waves, they were severely burned and would not live long. This horrified Americans and quickly caused their views to change. People closer to Truman in the military had a different opinion when it came to supporting the decision to drop the bombs. Henry Stimson, General Dwight Eisenhower and a number of the Manhattan Project scientists were against the use of the bombs because they knew the effects and believed it was morally wrong to target innocent people. Truman went against them hoping to end the war more quickly (History.com Staff). Truman had many people around him offering their opinions and the country’s opinion, but he still did what he wanted to

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