| By the way, in World War II, there was no question of cowardice. American soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines pursued the enemy relentlessly, often with horrifying casualties, as did their allies. The landings in Normandy, the Battle of the Bulge, Guadalcanal, Okinawa: sometimes it is amazing to contemplate the heroism of ordinary conscripts in these battles. By the time the atomic bombs were used, enough was enough. Truman had estimates, based on our experience in Okinawa, that there might be as many as a couple of million casualties, although more on the Japanese side than ours, and perhaps half a million of those fatalities. Dropping the bomb saved lives, very likely on both sides....... |
