Greenfield" Hiroshima's Lessons for the War on Terror

Daniel Greenfield @ the Sultan Knish blog ^ | Monday, August 12, 2013 | Daniel Greenfield

[Louis Foxwell]

Monday, August 12, 2013

Hiroshima's Lessons for the War on Terror

Posted by Daniel Greenfield @ the Sultan Knish blog

In the summer of '45, the United States concluded a war that had come to be seen by some as unwinnable after the carnage at Iwo Jima, with a bang.

On August 6th, the bomb fell on Hiroshima. And then on the 9th, it was Nagasaki's turn. Six days
later, Japan, which had been preparing to fight to the last man, surrendered.

For generations of liberals, those two names would come to represent the horror of America's war machine, when they actually represented a pragmatic ruthlessness that saved countless American and Japanese lives.

There can hardly be a starker contrast to our endless unwinnable nation-building exercises in which nothing is ever finished until we give up than the way that Truman cut the Gordian Knot and avoided a long campaign that would have depopulated Japan and destroyed the lives of a generation of American soldiers.

[Pan_Yan]

This article has shades of “Aplocolype Now” in it.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I think in 1945 Japan, a transcription record would have been used.

[GOPJ]

The spectacle of Nidal Hasan trying to communicate to a politically correct military bureaucracy that he really is a Muslim terrorist is almost comic. Before the shootings, he expressed sympathy for terrorists and put his Islamic holy warrior tag on his business cards. He did everything short of hiring a skywriter to fly over Fort Hood writing, "Nidal Hasan is a Muslim Terrorist".

Ted Koppel's advice of ignoring Muslim terrorism because it's more dangerous to react to it, backfired badly at Fort Hood.

Ping

[noinfringers2]

My only brother was killed on Okinawa and the day that the war with Japan was over I was in line at a Leyte Replacement Depot, about 7th or 8th in line, to get battle gear to invade Japan. When we were told to go back to our tents there was a great feeling of relief even though we still had that feeling that in cases like mine there was no revenge. After all is said and done war is hate and revenge. My brother’s last v-mail was that he was willing to go all the way if I wouldn’t have to come. Those words just stick in my memory to this day.

[GOPJ]

Nice story about a loving brother... thanks for sharing.

[Travis McGee]

We’re going to find out, sooner or later, if Abdul will pray, to a smoking crater.

[Apple Pan Dowdy]

Again Daniel hits the nail on the head. And I also agree with GenXteacher's post # 13.

Orson Scott Card's book series, "Ender's Game", deals with this same moral dilemma, and if you have not yet read it, you should. Although it was written as juvenile fiction, never-the-less it covers very adult concepts (just without any nasty words or porn scenes)which is refreshing to read.

Ender Wiggin, the third in a family of child geniuses, is selected by international military forces to save the world from destruction by an alien force of insect beings. Ender is sent away to an intense Battle training School where they train with war games. Compassion is the theme that runs through Ender's life and is the defining feature of his existence. The reason that he plays the games so well is his ability to understand the enemy and to inspire loyalty. And it is compassion that saves Ender. If not for his compassion he would have been turned into an automaton; he would have become either a killing machine or a power hungry creature. On the other hand, Ender realizes that Ruthlessness is sometimes necessary, but it is a last resort.

So there is conflict in Ender's mind when they tell him that he is to soon become the Commander of Earth's galactic forces against the alien invaders..... you will have to read the book to see how that turns out and you will not be disappointed.

I could not help but think of the parallels of Hiroshima and the agonizing decisions our military had to make to win the war (end the war).

By the way,"Ender's Game" the movie is to be released in November (staring Harrison Ford as a colonel in the International Fleet and the commandant of the Battle School, and Asa Butterfield as Ender. I suggest you read the book before going to see the movie.

[Albion Wilde]

The reasoning was that it would be better to have Japan totally destroyed and every person killed rather than surrender.

Sounds like the American newspaper business.

[Westbrook]

Wow, thanks for the info.

Didn’t know about the Emperor’s recording.

The Bushido Japanese have a lot in common with the Mohamedans: Fight to the death; brutalize and randomly murder citizens of occupied lands; torture, maim, and summarily execute prisoners.

If we needed more atomic bombs, I’m certain that they wouldn’t be long in coming, since the proof of concept had been demonstrated three times with two different nuclear fission technologies.

Too bad we don’t have what it takes to do the same to the Mohammedan savages.

[SJackson]

Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume

If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

..................

An excellent editorial. Disclosure, I wouldn't be here were it not for Truman's decision, both parents would have been occupied elsewhere.

[Wuli]

as horrible as it was, what the bombing of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki caused to be avoided -
for Japanesae citizens all across Japan, and
for the Japanese homeland, Japanese soldiers
and American soldiers - it constituted
a sacrifice for the greater good

[Wuli]

because we have refused to take a WWII style approach
to the war in Afghanistan, there is a very good chance
that, in a not very long time, all we have done
may be seem as a sacrifice for naught

[Sioux-san]

I am not seeing the parallel that Daniel is laying out. Obama is a muslim and his administration is filled with muslims, including his CIA chief, and muslim sympathizers like Hagel and Kerry and the minions working for this administration. Bush 1 & 2 and both Clintons are muslim sympathizers. Hence, a true war against the muslims was never the goal. Infiltration of our highest levels of Govt. has been achieved. The Chaos is upon us. Our troops are cannon fodder who cannot engage the enemy by ORDERS of the PINO. This isn’t about liking or hating - this is willful purposeful Treason.

[schurmann]

“> The bombs didn’t end the war, a tape recorder did.

Please elaborate.”

That’s easy.

ICTOAN is referring to the recording of the Showa Emperor telling is subjects they must “endure the undendurable” by surrendering to the Allies. I’m not sure what the recording medium was, but it wasn’t a transcript - it was kept from the hands of the pro-war faction and broadcast on radio the following day (or so). It was the first time most of the populace had heard his voice.

ICTOAN is trying to sound knowing and cute all at once. The clear implication is that the Imperial Japanese gave up because their Emperor told them to, not because the Allies were bringing the war home to them; therefore, there was no need to drop the atomic bombs.

Arguments against this interpretation are legion, but are not needed. All we have to do is read the Showa Emperor’s speech. In it, he referred explicitly to the employment by the enemy (US & Allies) of “a new and most cruel bomb.”

The nuclear warheads detonated over Hiroshima and Nagasaki were all of that.