The Dropping of the Atomic Bombs: You Decide

Directions: Read the following excerpts and use them to answer the questions.

Source 1: Why the Bomb was Needed and Justified By Bill Dietrich, Seattle Times
staff reporter
(1) The Japanese had demonstrated near-fanatical resistance, fighting to almost the last man on Pacific
islands, committing mass suicide on Saipan and unleashing kamikaze attacks at Okinawa. During its
island hopping campaigns, the U.S. suffered heavy losses in those bloody battles. Had the U.S. invaded
the mainland of Japan, would the Japanese not use the same tactics? Firebombing had killed 100,000 in
Tokyo with no major effect in making Japan end the war. Only the atomic bomb could jolt Japan's
leadership to surrender.
(2) With only two bombs ready (and a third on the way by late August 1945) it was too risky to "waste"
one in a demonstration over an unpopulated area to show Japan how powerful the bomb was.
(3) An invasion of Japan would have caused casualties on both sides that could easily have exceeded the
toll at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
(4) The two targeted cities would have been firebombed anyway by the U.S. Air Force and thousands
would have died regardless.
(5) Immediate use of the bomb convinced the world of its horror and prevented future use when nuclear
stockpiles were far larger.
(6) It proved to the Soviet Union that the United States was more powerful and not to be messed with.

Source 2: Leaflet dropped on cities in Japan warning civilians about the atomic
bomb, August 6, 1945. Source:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/truman/psources/ps_leaflets.html
TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE: America asks that you take immediate heed of what we
say on this leaflet. We are in possession of the most destructive explosive ever devised by
man. A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in
explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s can carry on a single mission. This awful
fact is for you to consider and we sadly promise you it is severely accurate. Before using
this bomb to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this
useless war, we ask that you now petition the Emperor to end the war. Our president has
outlined for you the thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender. We urge that you
accept these consequences and begin the work of building a new, better and peace-loving
Japan. You should take steps now to cease military resistance. Otherwise, we shall
definitely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to quickly and forcefully
end the war. EVACUATE YOUR CITIES.

Source 3: Testimony of Kinue Tomoyasu, Hiroshima Survivor

Kinue was in her home the day of the bombing. She recounts her story years later about that fateful day after the
U.S. dropped the atomic bomb on her city.
Mr. Ishido [a neighbor] came up to me and said, Quick! ...Your daughter is at the bank of the Ota River...She is
alive. ...Around Hiroshima Station, I saw more people lying dead...I couldnt tell who was who. I kept wondering
where my daughter was. But then, she cried for me, Mother! I recognized her voice. I found her in a horrible
condition. Her face looked terrible with chunks of skin melting and peeling off her. And she still appears in my
dreams like that sometimes. When I met her, she said,There shouldnt be any war. ...And nine hours later, she
died. ...I held her in my arms...
And around early October, my hair started to come out. I wondered what was happening to me... In November, I
became bald. Then, purple spots started to appear around my neck, my body and my arms,..., a lot of them, all over.
I had a high fever of 103 degrees... The doctors told me it was from the radiation from the atomic bomb. I still had a
fever when I was admitted here [HABV Nursing Home] for a while, but now I dont have a fever so often. ...My
son [served in the Japanese army and] ... suffered a lot. I dont know why, but he... killed himself... I was left alone.
I had to go through hardships, living alone. I have no family.

Doctors turned an elementary

school into a hospital to care for
children who were victims of the
bomb. Most children who were
exposed to the radiation died.

Victim suffering from

radiation after the blast.
Surgeons had to remove the
radioactive clothing which
had melted into peoples
skin.

Estimated Dead/Missing
Wounded

Hiroshima
70,000
70,000

Nagasaki
40,000
40,000

Total Casualties

140,000

80,000

Area Destroyed

4.7 sq. miles

1.8 sq. miles

Chart of Atomic Bombs: Source: http://www.ww2guide.com/atombomb.shtml

(note: the chart at the bottom does not include those that died from radiation after the bombings)