volprof
Destroyer of Nihilists
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2011
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With Kerry's visit to Hiroshima this week (and I don't think there's anything wrong with goodwill), I got to thinking about whether or not the US will ever officially apologize for the bombings. In past eras, this would have been unthinkable, but it seems like the US's actions are thought of in an increasingly negative light globally and domestically with each successive year, given the relative security of our distance from that time. There's even been speculation, via Wikileaks, that Obama has ruminated about apologizing and, while I think him the most likely of candidates to be the first to apologize, I also have difficulty accepting the claims of a Russian SVR (which is what Wikileaks and Snowden both are) tool on its face.
So, I'll do three things here:
1. Provide a poll that attempts to determine what VolNation posters think about the ethics of Truman's decision.
2. Ask you all less formally whether or not you think an American president will ever officially apologize for the bombings.
3. If "yes" to 2 above, then what do you think will be the implications of such an apology?
I will go ahead and answer the above for myself: Truman was right in his decision, whether or not Japan was ready to surrender, and this is largely because his decision to do so most likely prevented Japan from becoming another North and South Korea, as documents have revealed that the Soviets fully intended on invading northern Japan and Hokkaido by the time an American invasion would have occurred and perhaps even despite Japan's surrender. I theorize that Truman's decision therefore saved more lives, whether or not Japan was ready to surrender. Regarding an official American apology, coming from an American president, yes, I do think it will sadly occur at some point. The odds can only be in its favor, especially as Western societies trend more and more towards a bizarre form of reflexive self-loathing, something unseen in any other cultures in history. Lastly, I think that, besides being what will surely prove our most embarrassing moment in "domestic" foreign politics, I think it makes a particularly frightening gesture to other nations concerning our mindset about our nuclear deterrence: we probably aren't willing to use it.
So, I'll do three things here:
1. Provide a poll that attempts to determine what VolNation posters think about the ethics of Truman's decision.
2. Ask you all less formally whether or not you think an American president will ever officially apologize for the bombings.
3. If "yes" to 2 above, then what do you think will be the implications of such an apology?
I will go ahead and answer the above for myself: Truman was right in his decision, whether or not Japan was ready to surrender, and this is largely because his decision to do so most likely prevented Japan from becoming another North and South Korea, as documents have revealed that the Soviets fully intended on invading northern Japan and Hokkaido by the time an American invasion would have occurred and perhaps even despite Japan's surrender. I theorize that Truman's decision therefore saved more lives, whether or not Japan was ready to surrender. Regarding an official American apology, coming from an American president, yes, I do think it will sadly occur at some point. The odds can only be in its favor, especially as Western societies trend more and more towards a bizarre form of reflexive self-loathing, something unseen in any other cultures in history. Lastly, I think that, besides being what will surely prove our most embarrassing moment in "domestic" foreign politics, I think it makes a particularly frightening gesture to other nations concerning our mindset about our nuclear deterrence: we probably aren't willing to use it.