[Angelique]

I absolutely agree that the bombs were the only humane alternative as pointed out in the leading paragraph. The question is why Nagasaki as a target?

[flying Elvis]

See my post #5. Kokura was the primary target. Nagasaki was on the list because 90% of its population worked for Mitsubishi. The bombs were not intended to destroy military installations but industrial centers and the surrounding labor force. Japanese industry as such was very much decentralized in such that much of the production was carried out in small shops difficult to target with conventional bombs.