Van Gaalacticos
Full Member
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2014
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That was actually strongly debated at the time. The problem was that they didn’t have spare nukes, the couple they had had just been made and had to be transported out there. If they had tested in an empty area and it hadn’t had any positive response (which it wouldn’t have, given that the Japanese didn’t immediately surrender after Hiroshima) then they’d have been left with a single bomb left and no guarantee that it would even make it to its target. You have to remember that thousands of allied servicemen were dying each day, and vast numbers of POWs were at risk of imminent execution at any moment. This wasn’t a thoughtless act, it was something fiercely debated and only decided upon when they decided they had to better option.
Hear hear. Well said Kentonio!!!