Pros and Cons of the Atomic Bomb in WWII

During wartime, horrible atrocities against all of humanity must be dealt with. Crimes against humanity, as never witnessed before, and hopefully to never be seen again, occurred during the course of World War II. The security of our nation and of other allied nations was severely threatened, not only by the Germans, but by the Japanese. The Japanese were a strong people willing to fight till it was no longer possible. It may even be said that they were suicidal, with their kamikaze pilots and no real hope of defeating the allied nations. America has always, and most likely will always place a high value on American lives. In order to protect these lives and to insure that the world is safe for democracy, American leaders had to make a very tough decision, whether or not to drop the atomic bomb on Japan. This act would essentially be trading Japanese lives for American lives.

The Japanese, who were the aggressors, much like the Germans, were not sympathized with. They were responsible for hundreds of thousands of American casualties in the Pacific, including the unprovoked attack on Pearl Harbor. With Japanese forces showing no signs of surrender, American leaders made a decision. A decision that changed the history of warfare forever. On the week of August 6, 1945, the first and the last atomic bombs ever used during war were unleashed against Japan, vaporizing two of its largest cities.

        The act of dropping these bombs can be considered a great act against humanity, and rightfully so. Any act of war that will slaughter hundreds of thousands of people should be considered a crime against humanity. However, if we had not dropped the bomb on Japan, how many Americans would have been killed attempting to invade the Japanese mainland? Some estimates are...