Goat Boy wrote:I'm sure most of us struggle morally and of course we know the consequences and impact of all this.
Has anybody read Five Days In August by Michael Gordin?Most Americans believe that the Second World War ended because the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan forced it to surrender. Five Days in August boldly presents a different interpretation: that the military did not clearly understand the atomic bomb's revolutionary strategic potential, that the Allies were almost as stunned by the surrender as the Japanese were by the attack, and that not only had experts planned and fully anticipated the need for a third bomb, they were skeptical about whether the atomic bomb would work at all. With these ideas, Michael Gordin reorients the historical and contemporary conversation about the A-bomb and World War II.
Five Days in August explores these and countless other legacies of the atomic bomb in a glaring new light. Daring and iconoclastic, it will result in far-reaching discussions about the significance of the A-bomb, about World War II, and about the moral issues they have spawned.
I looked at that book. Here's a bit further on in the review you posted above :
"Another interesting point in Michael Gordin's book is the idea of the atomic bombs not being considered the "ultimate weapon" until after they were used. In the US military, the bombs were seen as another destructive tool. The scientists who developed the bombs were actually quite surprised at the amount of radiation and its harmfulness."
With the greatest of respect to the reviewer, that is nonsense. Whilst they may have had qualms about its destructive power, the vast majority of the key players in the Manhattan Project were fully aware of what they were doing, and its likely force. If the reviewer is suggesting they were surprised at the destruction in Hiroshima, that's also bollocks. They'd tested the bomb is New Mexico - they were absolutely informed prior to the event.
If anyone wants to read a truly great book on the race for the bomb, this is the one to find (imho). It may just be the greatest non fiction book I've ever read :
Clearly it's quite heavy going and technical sometimes, but it explains everything you need to know, in a brilliantly insightful and concise manner. It takes awhile to read but it's worth it.