The dropping of atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki ended the wars quickly, as Japan saw the devastating effects it had on their people and country. The decision to drop these land flattening bombs was not an easy one, but one that many people believed had to happen.
4 Pros of Dropping the Atomic Bomb
1. Japan Avoided Being Invaded
If the United States did not drop the atomic bomb, Japan may have been turned into a colony of the United States. America had been preparing to invade Japan and take over when the atomic bomb became available. They decided this would be a better option to limit the amount of American lives that would have been lost if they invaded.
2. Saves Many Lives
The aim of the U.S. in dropping the atomic bomb was to save hundreds of lives of American soldiers. The U.S. was the very first country to develop an atomic bomb, their focus of using in it Hiroshima and Nagasaki was to show the world that they had it. This, inadvertently saved lives around the entire world.
3. All Japan POW’s Released
All American POW’s were released from Japan after the bomb was dropped in the two biggest cities of the country.
4. Peace
Although the United States achieved superpower, the country kept peace balanced across their different allies around the world. Having the atomic bomb and other nations observing its destructive power, peace talks and negotiations quickly began.
4 Cons of Dropping the Atomic Bomb
1. Starvation
Many Japanese reportedly suffered from starvation. This is because the Japanese army took all of the food reserves and resources left after the bomb had been dropped. Massive cases of death due to hunger were reported in Japan. In fact, the number of deaths due to hunger is more than the number of casualties after the bomb was dropped.
2. Not Enough Time for Peace Negotiation
The Japanese were thought to surrender or to give up due to massive side attacks of the U.S. If the U.S. has demonstrated the effects of the bomb sooner, the Japanese could have been convinced to surrender and avoided the loss of lives. The United States did not give enough time to the Japanese to know that the bomb will hit Hiroshima as well as Nagasaki. It could have helped prevent the lost of civilian lives.
3. Cost
The United States spent $2 billion for the atomic bombs development, and many believed that the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing was done only to justify the billion dollar project.
4. Massive Deaths
Japan sacrificed tens of thousands of civilian lives just to prove supreme power between the Soviet Union and the United States.
The United States and Japan have not predicted the aftermath of the bombing that led to massive loss of lives. However, the bombing has made Japan realize that they do not have supreme power over the U.S. Also, the bombing has made Japan withdrew its army from other countries that it has invaded, particularly in Asia.
