Taylor Powell Kevin Cantera HIST 1700 Nov. 7, 2013 Did the A-Bomb Save Lives?

World War II was one of the deadliest wars the world has ever seen. Millions of people died and countless were injured. Just the bare numbers show how warfare transformed into something unfathomable to the 19th century. New technology was coming forward, with tanks, airplanes and much more. One of these great technological advancements was the atomic bomb, which would cause one of the greatest controversies of American warfare. On August 6, 1945, the Americans dropped an atomic device over Japan on the Island of Hiroshima, an industrial and military center. Instantly there were 80,000 people killed. This would ultimately prevent the American armies from having to launch an assault on the Japanese soil. Three days later the Soviet Union dropped an atomic bomb over the port of Nagasaki, which killed another 60,000 instantly. In both areas, many others would also get sick and die from the radiation. So, did the atomic bomb really save lives? First, the decision of whether or not to drop the bomb was obviously very difficult and probably had heavy consequences either way. On one hand, America can virtually end the war instantly, albeit in terrorizing fashion. On the other, an invasion onto the mainland of Japan would surmount to an extreme amount of casualties as well. What was the best option? President Truman suggested that an attack on the mainland would result in one million casualties, half of which would be Americans. Churchill stated that taking over Japan could cost

up to one million American lives. Either way, that is an extremely high number. If you look at it from the point of view that you are preventing a major bloodshed, it makes it a little bit more understandable. Why risk the lives of our soldiers when the bomb could be a lot more effective and it would certainly send a message. War is a serious matter. The fact that the bomb was an extremely horrific doesnt take away the fact that it was also a demonstration of military power. It may seem like a cheap shot, but you have to remember that this was war, and it wasnt a gentlemans game anymore. The times had changed into doing what it takes to come out victorious. We cant forget the fact that the bomb did kill at least 140,000 Japanese. When you hear those numbers, it makes you wonder how you can even consider such a number to be considered saving lives. If America had decided not to drop the bomb and instead invaded on foot, it would have been a massive invasion and large quantities of men would have been marched into battle. There is no telling for sure how many casualties there would have been, but even if we took the lower number of the above mentioned estimates, There would had been near a million. If you compare that with 140,000+, it supports the dropping of the bomb. So overall did the atomic bomb save lives? I think so. It may have not been the expected thing to do, but when you look at the numbers, it screams loud and clear to me that the bomb saved lives. I think this situation had two results that would both end up in deaths, it was just a matter of choosing the lesser of two evils.