My Dad turned 18 in January of 1945. Uncle Sam pulled him out of high school.(He never finished)They had him prepping for the invasion of Japan. Thank you Mr. Truman.
My uncle was in just about that same situation. My mother was 12 and even though he wasn’t there to complete his senior year, they said he had enough credits and she was able to go up on the stage and get his diploma for him. She said she was sad at the time that they didn’t know where he was or if he was ok, but she was so proud. Being 12 she was also a little embarrassed at all of the attention, clapping and cheering she (he) was getting and it is a day she will never forget.
Oh, had Truman not made the decision that he did, the world would look much different, US and Japan would have spend millions in precious blood, and the bad feeling that would never have been healed.
People should take note of lessons history teaches.
Example: What drove Japan, and why would defeating Japan have been so ‘expensive’?
I believe the answer is religious convictions ingrained in the culture.
Now think of Islam, and what we face today? Makes Japan look like a Sunday Picnic. Just an observation.
My dad was on a ship headed toward mainland Japan for the ground invasion. He would have been one of the first ones off the boat.
I would never have been born.
Thanks Mr. Truman, indeed.