Posted on 08/10/2002 3:43:33 PM PDT by Reaganwuzthebest
US Planned to Drop an Atomic Bomb
on Europe During WWII
In early August 2002 Studs Terkel interviewed Paul Tibbets, the pilot who flew the Enola Gay on its mission to nuke Hiroshima. In the middle of this fascinating interview, General Tibbets dropped a bombshell of a different sort. Tibbets relates that after being briefed about his upcoming mission by General Uzal Ent (commander of the second air force) and others:
General Ent looked at me and said, "The other day, General Arnold [commander general of the army air corps] offered me three names." Both of the others were full colonels; I was lieutenant-colonel. He said that when General Arnold asked which of them could do this atomic weapons deal, he replied without hesitation, "Paul Tibbets is the man to do it." I said, "Well, thank you, sir." Then he laid out what was going on and it was up to me now to put together an organisation and train them to drop atomic weapons on both Europe and the Pacific--Tokyo.
Studs Turkel: Interesting that they would have dropped it on Europe as well. We didn't know that.
Paul Tibbets: My edict was as clear as could be. Drop simultaneously in Europe and the Pacific because of the secrecy problem--you couldn't drop it in one part of the world without dropping it in the other.
This is the last thing Tibbets says about nuking Europe, and Turkel never follows up! Thus, we don't know which city was to be targeted (presumably it was a German one) or why the plan wasn't carried out. The Memory Hole has written to Tibbets, asking these logical follow-up questions. Assuming he responds, we'll let you know what he says.
Later in the interview, Tibbets reveals another important piece of hidden history--that the US was just about to drop a third atomic bomb on Japan when it surrendered:
Studs Terkel: Why did they drop the second one, the Bockscar [bomb] on Nagasaki?
Paul Tibbets: Unknown to anybody else--I knew it, but nobody else knew--there was a third one. See, the first bomb went off and they didn't hear anything out of the Japanese for two or three days. The second bomb was dropped and again they were silent for another couple of days. Then I got a phone call from General Curtis LeMay [chief of staff of the strategic air forces in the Pacific]. He said, "You got another one of those damn things?" I said, "Yessir." He said, "Where is it?" I said, "Over in Utah." He said, "Get it out here. You and your crew are going to fly it." I said, "Yessir." I sent word back and the crew loaded it on an airplane and we headed back to bring it right on out to Trinian and when they got it to California debarkation point, the war was over.
Studs Terkel: What did General LeMay have in mind with the third one?
Paul Tibbets: Nobody knows.
Source: "'One Hell of a Big Bang'" by Studs Terkel. Guardian (London), 6 Aug 2002.
Just think: Glow in the dark surrender monkeys
This is true, which is why I don't doubt if the US had the bomb before the war ended in Europe, Roosevelt would have used it. Too bad though Russia wasn't made to leave Eastern Europe, we had the power to make them and didn't use it.
...You know, I really got's to thank you for finding and sharing this "Little" Number with us. Who would-a thunk 50 years ago that in a new Century we'd get to know about our possessing a 3rd Hell on Earth and of our will to use it for Victory in War...?
...Sort-a reminds us of the attitude we all should embrace in a new -Time of War- with an Enemy that is now...
...just around the corner and up your street...?
Signed:..Witness ALOHA RONNIE / Vet-Battle of IA DRANG-1965 / Landing Zone Falcon / www.LzXray.com
NEVER FORGET
Nonsense. Despite his hard left politics, Studs Terkel is one of the best interviewers alive. He lets the other fellow talk, rather than argue with him or pass judgment. This was first-rate work.
Q. why do they ban fireworks at the tour De France?
A. Cause everytime they went off, the French riders would surrender.
Great yukk!
My thoughts exactly!
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