Do you think Roosevelt and the US government misread the Japanese society’s non-capitulation?
“Do you think Roosevelt and the US government misread the Japanese society’s non-capitulation?”
You mean Harry Trueman? I suspect that if someone in the government understood what we now believe the Japanese meant, then he was WAY too low on the totem to ever get the ear of someone who counted. Also, the Japanese could have used someone who spoke American, as opposed to just understanding English. That was a cluster fluck on both sides. But the other reason the bombs were dropped was to warn the Soviets that they had better stop the war with what they’d already won instead of trying to steam-roll the Allies. Funny thing. No more bombs were built until after the Soviets tested theirs. Then we started building them in a panic.