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Was the dropping of atomic bombs justified?

Was the dropping of atomic bombs justified?. Why did the US decide to drop the bomb?. Pacific war Millions invested in development Growing threat from USSR Vengeance for torture & suicide attacks. What happened when the bomb was dropped?.

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Was the dropping of atomic bombs justified?

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  1. Was the dropping of atomic bombs justified?

  2. Why did the US decide to drop the bomb? • Pacific war • Millions invested in development • Growing threat from USSR • Vengeance for torture & suicide attacks

  3. What happened when the bomb was dropped? • 6 August 1945 Enola Gay dropped atomic bomb on Hiroshima • 70,000 immediate deaths • 200,000+ deaths radiation and fall out • 9 August, Nagasaki40,000 deaths • 14 August Japan surrenders

  4. What did the bombs look like? ‘Little Boy’ Uranium, Hiroshima ‘Fat Man’, Plutonium, Nagasaki

  5. How powerful were they? • ‘Fat Boy’ blast equivalent to 20,000 tons of explosives detonated at once • Strong winds from blast destroyed all buildings within a 1.5 mile radius • Heat generated incinerated everything in its path

  6. What was the impact?

  7. As we watch the film clips think about this…Armed with all of the knowledge that President Truman and his advisors had accumulated: Was the dropping of the atomic bomb justified?

  8. Task • The Library of Congress is preparing a special exhibition of documents and photos relating to the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. • This exhibition will commemorate the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the bomb on August 6, 2010. • The exhibition will seek to answer one of the most controversial questions of the 20th century: was the dropping of the atomic bomb justified (right)?

  9. Supporters believe that the atomic bomb helped to end the war more quickly. • They argue that without the atomic bomb, the United States would have had to invade the home islands of Japan, resulting in hundreds of thousands of additional American and Japanese casualties (people killed or injured).

  10. Opponents argue that Japan would have surrendered without the use of an atomic bomb on a civilian target. • They say that Japan was a beaten nation in August of 1945 and was only looking for a way to surrender while preserving the role of their emperor.

  11. You Decide! • The Librarian of Congress has asked you, a distinguished scholar, to settle this question. • You will join one of four teams. • Each team will research the decision to drop the bomb from a different perspective.

  12. These are the four perspectives: 1) A scientist involved with the Manhattan Project 2) A senior advisor to President Truman 3) A senior U.S. military leader 4) A Japanese survivor of the bombing

  13. Manhattan Project Scientific Perspectives The Franck Report, June 11, 1945 http://www.dannen.com/decision/franck.html Scientific Panel, June 16, 1945 http://www.dannen.com/decision/scipanel.html Szilard Petition, Final Version, July 17, 1945 http://www.dannen.com/decision/45-07-17.html J. Robert Oppenheimer http://www.doug-long.com/oppie.htm

  14. Advisors to President Truman Secretary of War Henry Stimson’s Diaries http://www.doug-long.com/ Secretary of State James F. Brynes http://www.doug-long.com/byrnes.htm President Truman’s Diary http://www.doug-long.com/ Bard Memorandum http://www.doug-long.com/bard.htm John J. McCloy http://www.doug-long.com/mccloy.htm

  15. Military Advisors General George C. Marshall http://www.doug-long.com/stimson4.htm Admiral William Leahy http://www.doug-long.com/leahy.htm

  16. Japanese Leaders and Survivors Resources Japanese Minister of War Korechika Anami http://www.doug-long.com/anami.htm A-Bomb World War II Museum http://www.csi.ad.jp/ABOMB/index.html Scientific Data of the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Disaster http://www-sdc.med.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/n50/index.html “My Experience of the Nagasaki Atomic Bombing and An Outline of the Damages Caused by the Explosion,” by Dr. Raisuke Shirabe http://www-sdc.med.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/n50/shirabe/contents-E.html

  17. Each group will research the essential question by reading the informational student handout and analyzing the primary sources. • After researching the information, the group will discuss the essential question within their group and come to a group consensus on the answer to their question from the point of view of a diplomat, scientist, Japanese survivor, or military leader.

  18. Each group will to create a short position paper answering the question, using the graphic organizer. • The class will take notes using http://bubbl.us/edit.php a mind mapping and brainstorming application within the web browser. • After every group has presented, the students will write a short individual report answering the question. • The class will vote on whether the decision to drop the bomb was justified.

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