both nuclear detonations should have been war crimes.
You serious? Those nuclear detonations that you say should have been war crimes ended WWII, the bloodiest war in human history. Had they not been dropped the war would have went on, and an all out invasion of the Japanese mainland would have been necessary. The American casualties of such an invasion would have made D-Day look like a minor skirmish. Something to remember the next time you think that this war a "war crime".
As an island nation that relied heavily on other regions throughout the Pacific Rim for natural resources, Japan was basically incapable of sustaining itself once the U.S. had occupied islands within flying distance of Japan by our heavy bombers.
That's exactly right. I attended a reunion, last year, of the 760 Fa Bn. (To honor my dad, who served with that unit) They were going to be part of the invasion of Japan. They would have been in the first wave - second day. The number of deaths, on both sides, would have been massive. As it was, my dad's Bn was among the first to go into Japan after the bombs were dropped. They said every home - every business - was full of guns and ammunition. Even sharpened sticks. The Japanese people were armed to the teeth and ready to kill Americans - whether they wanted to or not. The Emperor had put everything into weaponry - even to the detriment of his own people. Many, many, many more Japanese would have died had we not dropped those bombs, and the American side would have incurred massive casualties beyond imagination. I would, in all liklihood, not be here today.
I always tire of folks who try to make our side look like the bad guys all of the time. We were not even involved in that war, at least not militarily, until the Japanese attacked US. In the long run, dropping the bombs ended the war quickly and, ultimately, SAVED lives.
By the way, I thought I'd understood that the cities that were bombed were where weapons manufacturing plants were located. Please, somebody correct me if i'm wrong.