25 Jun 09 07:22, Roger Nelson wrote to Roy Witt:


 RW>> I'm sure he took into account the 'rape of Nanking' and other such
 RW>> brutalities. Dropping that bomb helped to save lives, more than it
 RW>> did to kill people. I would have had a hard time dealing with that
 RW>> decision too, as I assume Truman did. But in the end, dropping that
 RW>> bomb meant that at least 1 million GIs wouldn't die trying to invade
 RW>> a country whose people were known to die fighting. The Nagasaki bomb
 RW>> was probably even harder on him.

 RN> I also think it was one of those damned if you do and damned if you
 RN> don't situations.  We had to wipe out a mentality that should have
 RN> been obsolete.

We also had to beat the Soviets to the punch, or they would be occupying
half of the Japanese mainland after the war. That's why Truman didn't
mention the bomb to Stalin at Potsdam, but he did tell Churchhill.
Somehow, Stalin must have already known about it, judging (not me) by his
reaction to the discussions there.

 RN> Cary Grant had a great line about that in Destination Tokyo.

I don't remember it, but it was probably a good one.

                R\%/itt

Joy lives in the fight, in the attempt, in the suffering involved, not in
the victory itself.

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