NewDark

Can you answer two questions for me.

What is the purpose of having a democracy?

Is it ever morally correct to affirmatively vote for a genocide?

A material factor in the decision for the bombs to be dropped, not in the necessity for Japan to surrender. Those are two different things.

First, I trust the numerous first hand accounts of actual leaders of the time over this one historian acting like their memories aren't great fifty years after the fact.

Second, the imminent Soviet invasion absolutely was a material factor. One of the reasons why the nukes were used were to end the war before the Soviets could invade so they couldn't dictate any terms of surrender.

"It is my opinion that the use of this barbarous weapon at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated and ready to surrender because of the effective sea blockade and the successful bombing with conventional weapons." -Admiral William D. Leahy, 1950

The Japanese had, in fact, already sued for peace before the atomic age was announced to the world with the destruction of Hiroshima and before the Russian entry into war.... The atomic bomb played no decisive part, from a purely military standpoint, in the defeat of Japan. - Chester W. Nimitz, 6 October 1945 Commander-in-chief of the US pacific fleet in WWII

First, the Japanese were ready to surrender and it wasn't necessary to hit them with that awful thing. Second, I hated to see our country be the first to use such a weapon - Dwight D Eisenhower 1963

Based on a detailed investigation of all the facts, and supported by the testimony of the surviving Japanese leaders involved, it is the Survey's opinion that certainly prior to 31 December 1945, and in all probability prior to 1 November 1945, Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated. - US Government Strategic Bombing Survey, 1946

I haven't, although I should have made more consideration for that. There's still plenty of degrees here, just like how the firebombing of Japan was also brutal. I think you'll agree that the wholesale evaporation of a city to a nuclear bomb is a little different than bombing a city too hard yeah?

Ah yes, things people weren't aware of in the 90s: masks, respiratory illness, mobile phones, cameras, and ice cream.

Granted that exact form factor of combination phone/camera is novel but come on.

Great. While we peacefully beg for our humanity, they can continue to violently brutalize and oppress us! This surely will work.

Yep, an attempt at recuperation is most likely.

The means of production being in the hands of the few rather than the many.

And the Soviet invasion was mostly a consequence of United States meddling in Operation Cyclone. Destabilization was the point.