Here is a review of a book that supports Truman, "Code-Name Downfall: The Secret Plan to Invade Japan" by
Norman Polmar, Thomas B. Allen:
What would have happened if bombs had not been dropped on Japan in August 1945?
Distinguished military historians Thomas B. Allen and Norman Polmar answer that provocative question in Why Truman Dropped the Atomic Bomb on Japan, a vivid and dramatic narrative of America’s war in the Pacific, which would lead inevitably to massive amphibious assaults against the Japanese home islands.
Based on newly declassified documents, personal interviews, and a decade of meticulous research, their book traces the progress of the Pacific War and reveals the top-secret details of the plans and preparations, on both the American and Japanese sides, for an invasion that would be far more complex—and costly in human lives—than the D-Day landings in France.
In June 1945, with no knowledge as yet of the atom bomb’s effectiveness, President Harry S. Truman approved the plans for the invasion—Operation Downfall. In the Pacific, troops, ships, and assault craft were being assembled in unprecedented numbers. Japanese cities were being devastated by relentless aerial bombardment in preparation for the assault. To repel the invasion, Japan had almost two million troops under arms, while more millions of civilians were being trained to kill the invaders, with guns, explosive charges strapped to their bodies, and even bamboo spears.
Thousands of planes and midget submarines were being produced by the Japanese for suicide missions. Death was preferable to surrender. Both sides were considering using poison gas and weapons of germ warfare. Had the invasion taken place, it would have prolonged the war by a year and a half, turned Japan into a wasteland, and cost the lives of possibly hundreds of thousands of Americans and millions of Japanese. It would have been the bloodiest and most bitterly fought battle of any war in history.
But there was no invasion.
President Truman authorized the use of atomic bomb. After the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and following an abortive military coup and intensive debate in the military-ruled government, Japan surrendered. The authors reveal how a faction in the Japanese military plotted to overturn the Emperor’s decision to surrender and planned to fight on. They also reveal the conflicting opinions and strategies on the American side, where some believed that an invasion would not be necessary to defeat Japan, while others, most notably General Douglas MacArthur, were eager to invade, whatever the costs. But perhaps their most shocking revelation is that while Truman hoped the bomb might end the war, it was not considered as an alternative to invasion. If Japan had fought on, additional atomic bombs would have been used against Japanese cities and in direct support of the amphibious landing.
Some historians have argued that the use of the atomic bomb was both unnecessary and immoral. Allen and Polmar totally refute that argument and back up their position with hard evidence. More than that, the authors describe the deep personal beliefs of the men who determined the course of the war, not only from the vantage point of history, but also in the context of that terrible time. In the end, with new knowledge and understanding of the events during these climactic days of the war, readers will be able to decide for themselves whether Truman’s decision was justified.
rossperry.com |
