OzOne wrote in message

On Wed, 02 Feb 2005 05:13:10 GMT, "Maxprop"
scribbled thusly:


OzOne wrote in message

As opposed to dropping A bombs on cities "to save lives"

1. They started the war with us.
2. They vowed to fight to "the death of every Japanese man, woman, and
child," even when it was clearly obvious that they could not win.
3. We would have accomplished the same thing over a period of time with
conventional weapons, had the Japanese not surrendered, which was
unlikely.
4. It had to happen. Nuclear weapons had been developed, initially by
the
Germans and brought to fruition by the Americans. Someone at some time
had
to use a nuke, if for no other reason than to demonstrate to the world the
awesome destructive power of such weapons. The whole concept of MAD
(mutual
assured destruction), which kept the cold war from heating up for nearly
40
years, would not have been realized had no one ever dropped "the bomb."
It
was an inevitable step in the evolution of international relations, like
it
or not.
5. The Japanese deserved it.

Max


Max, have you ever heard anything about this
http://tinyurl.com/57pvh

"he first atomic bomb was exploded over Hiroshima on August 5, 1945;
the second was detonated over Nagasaki four days later. On August 8th,
the Soviet Union declared war on an already beaten Japan. But other
Japanese attempts to surrender had been coming fast and furious prior
to these historically important developments.

One of the most compelling was transmitted by General MacArthur to
President Roosevelt in January 1945, prior to the Yalta conference.
MacArthur's communiqué stated that the Japanese were willing to
surrender under terms which included:

. Full surrender of Japanese forces on sea, in the air, at home, on
island possessions, and in occupied countries.

. Surrender of all arms and munitions. · Occupation of the Japanese
homeland and island possessions by allied troops under American
direction.

. Japanese relinquishment of Manchuria, Korea, and Formosa, as well as
all territory seized during the war.

. Regulation of Japanese industry to halt present and future
production of implements of war.

. Turning over of Japanese which the United States might designate war
criminals.

. Release of all prisoners of war and internees in Japan and in areas
under Japanese control.

Amazingly, these were identical to the terms which were accepted by
our government for the surrender of Japan seven months later. Had they
been accepted when first offered, there would have been no heavy loss
of life on Iwo Jima (over 26,033 Americans killed or wounded,
approximately 21,000 Japanese killed) and Okinawa (over 39,000 U.S.
dead and wounded, 109,000 Japanese dead), no fire bombing of Japanese
cities by B-29 bombers (it is estimated that the dropping of 1,700
tons of incendiary explosives on Japanese cities during March 9th-10th
alone killed over 80,000 civilians and destroyed 260,000 buildings),
and no use of the atomic bomb.

Countless thousands of Japanese civilians perished as a result of the
atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And the world was
suddenly and violently brought into the atomic age."

Makes you think that the lives of all those, Japanese and Allies were
sacrificed because the bomb needed to be completed and tested.

Nice piece of revisionist history, Oz, but it won't fly.

On July 26, 1945 (it was 7/27 am in Tokyo) the Potsdam Proclaim was
broadcast in Japanese, demanding unconditional surrender. The Japanese
rejected it, complaining that no provision had been made to insure the
protection of Emperor Hirohito, whom they believed to be a god. At this
time Yoshijiro Umezu, Chief of Army General Staff, and a number of other
top-ranking officers, vowed to "fight to the death of every Japanese man,
woman, and child . . ." Soon thereafter American troop carriers, such as
the Indianapolis, were sunk, with substantial loss of life. On August 6,
1945, Hiroshima was bombed with a type of weapon previously unused in
combat. Nagasaki followed. On September 2, 1945, Japan surrendered
unconditionally, having indicated a desire to do so some three weeks
earlier.

The best independent (read: non-government) experts on WWII, South Pacific
Theater, are convinced that the war would have lingered for another 6 months
to a year, had the bombs not been used. Only the anti-US revisionists
believe otherwise. I have no doubt on which side of the issue you fall.

Max