Should the US Have Dropped the Atomic Bombs?

Though killing innocent civilians is morally unjust, I believe that in World War II, dropping the bomb was necessary for many reasons. First off, an invasion of Japan would have cost more lives than the total people killed by the two bombs (an estimated 250,000 Americans would have died in an invasion; 220,000 total died in the bombings). In terms of number of lives taken, the bombs did less. Secondly, by creating a more lenient peace treatment, if would have should weakness. This weakness would only encourage other dictators that we were not strong and this would of most likely result in another war. Next, I believe that personally, if Japan had two bombs, they would have done the same thing to us. Also, dropping on the bomb on a non-civilian area would just have been a wasted effort. The Japanese were not willing to surrender. Lastly, the bombs were a statement. In a bombing of Tokyo, 80,000 died but nothing happened. When Nagasaki was bombed with the atomic bomb, likewise 80,000 died, but the result of that was the Japanese surrendering. The bomb also showed that we, as a nation, have that kind of technology and that we are a powerful force.

Major Battles in World War II

EL ALAMEIN

El Alamein is in Egypt, located about 150 miles from Cairo and around 66 miles from Alexandria. The commander of the Axis was Erwin Rommel and the commander for the Allies was Bernard Montgomery. Montgomery, or Monty, as some called him, was respected by the men in the Allied forces. He spoke with confidence and put much emphasis on organization and morale. The war began when Rommel decided to hit the Allies in the south. Naturally, Monty successfully knew this attack was coming, because, not only did Rommel previously try this type of attack, but he had gotten a hold of Rommel’s battle plans. The plans also showed the supply routes of Rommel. In August of 1942, Rommel was only receiving 33% of supplies that he needed. On the other hand, the Allies were getting vast amounts of supplies through the Suez Canal. By the end of August, the Allies were ready for an attack. They placed many land mines south of El Alamein, and the German tanks were severely hit by those. Many German tanks were also easily picked off by Allied fighter planes. A sandstorm provided temporary cover for the Axis tanks, but in the end Rommel retreated. Later, the Allies attacked in what is known as “Operation Lightfoot.” The goal of this was to have infantry cross over mines without setting them off and having engineers create a 24 foot wide path so that the Allies could drive their tanks along in a single file line. However, the Allied infantry did not get as far as planned, and when one tank stopped, all of the tanks had to, therefore making progress slow. Monty later launched “Operation Supercharge” which was a surprise attack on the Axis troops. Rommel used tank against tank warfare, but outnumber, he was beaten. On November 4^th, Rommel retreated. It was significant because it ended the Axis hopes of gaining access to the Suez Canal, taking over Egypt, and gaining access of Middle Eastern Oil Fields.

World War II Propaganda Posters

It's World War II. Most supplies being produced are war materials. The supplies of ordinary materials are running low. Therefore the government and cooperations began running a campaign that encouraged many to conserve materials. This poster is an example of that campaign, as it stresses the need to conserve materials. This picture contains a series of ordinary, everyday materials, presumably waste. But, as one can clearly see the waste is in the shape of Hitler’s face. This is a practical use of symbolism, because it shows that your waste helps the enemy, Hitler. This poster is intended for all American, in hope that they will all conserve materials so the most of the industries can focus on the war effort. What makes this so pervasive is the way they made Hitler’s face out of ordinary junk. It is a superb use of symbolism. It is a great way of generating fear among the public out of something so simple. The poster also uses the phrase “Waste Helps the Enemy.” This too is an extremely powerful slogan, as it is simple, direct yet unusual, because many people don’t realize that waste does in fact help the enemy.

Top 5 Causes of World War II

1. Hitler

Hitler was a major cause of World War II. He was the one who invaded Austria, Sudetenland, and eventually Poland. He built up his army, even when the Treaty of Versailles forbid him too. He made pacts with Japan and Italy. But most importantly, he couldn’t be trusted. He promised not to invade Czechoslovakia, but he did. He also signed a peace treaty with Russia, but he broke it. Hilter’s rise to power without any intervention from other countries lead to World War II.

2. Totalitarianism

Totalitarianism created a lot of tension between many countries. Russia, Germany, and Italy were all controlled by this type of government. Many other European countries had a strong dislike for this type of government, and were scared that it would spread. World War II in a sense was an effort to stop totalitarianism government.

3. Britain/France Did Not Act When Germany Violated the Treaty of Versailles

Many felt that the Treaty of Versailles was in fact too harsh on Germany. So in 1938, Hitler decided to take both Austria and Sudetenland. This was, in fact, a complete violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Both France and Great Britain could have easily taken down Hitler at any point for the violation. Instead, they let Hitler get away the invasion. This was a crucial mistake for France and Britain, because Hitler only became stronger after this. France and Britain let their opportunity to crush Hitler slip away due to the fact that they felt the Treaty of Versailles was too harsh on Germany.

4. Failure of the League of Nations

After World War I, the League of Nations was supposed to prevent any further conflicts. However, it was not able to stop Italy, Germany or Japan for many reasons. First of all, it did not have any power. The League could not force a country to do something; they could only ask the countries to do something. Secondly, they League had no army; therefore it couldn’t take direct action against aggressive countries. Lastly, not everyone was allowed to join. For example, Germany could not because it was blamed for World War I. Russia could not join because they were communist. Other countries like the United States simply did not want to join the League. The League of Nation was a complete failure.

5. Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor is extremely important because it was a major cause of United States entering the war. The day after the attack, the United States officially entered the war by declaring war on Japan. The next day, December 8^th, 1941, Japan declared war on the United States and Britain. Days later, on December 11^th, 1941, Germany and Italy both declared war on the United States. The attack caused the United States to entering in the war.

The World War I Home Front

The fictional story (based on factual evidence) of Dave (22 years old) – An America Civilian on the home front

How has the war impacted my life? (Raising Funds and Troops)

It is 1917 and war with Germany is underway. Already, many of my friends have been drafted because of the Selective Service Act. This required all men 21 to 30 years old to register for the draft. I was not chosen. Thought my friends weren’t excited about the draft at first, national pride had caused patriotic fervor, and many became eager to support their country. My best friend Brett said he was ready from the start to join the American Expeditionary Force, otherwise known as the name given to U.S. Soldiers fighting in Europe. He is now fighting with this force alongside France on the western front in order to take down Germany. My other best friend, Jemaine, sent me a letter the other day saying that his convoy drove through France, and many cheered on while the Americans drove by, prepared to fight. Even though I am not physically fighting in the war, I am still doing my best to support the cause. In couple days, there is a Bond Drive at the local park. It will help raise much needed money. I plan on purchasing a couple Liberty Bonds in order to support the war from here (the home front). I do miss my friends very much, but I know we must all try to do our best to support the war. Overall, the war, in my opinion has caused a hightened sense of national pride.

Neutral or Fight?

Should the United States have gone to war in World War 1?

In my opinion, I do believe that the United States should have gone to war during World War I. I say this because, to me, it seemed as though entering the war inevitable. Though trying to stay neutral, Germany would not remain peaceful to us. We tried to make peaceful negotiations with them and it did work, for awhile. Germany agreed to give our ships warnings before they shot them down. Unfortunately, Germany could not stay faithful with this and on February 1^st, 1917; Germany announced that it would stop giving our ships warnings. Secondly, Germany was basically asking us to go war. Zimmerman of German sent messages down to Mexico asking them to fight us. This should have provoked and angered us, causing war against Germany to become almost inevitable .Put in a simple analogy, if your dad told your younger brother to beat you up; you wouldn’t just sit there, take the beating, and act like nothing happened. Germany was not peaceful to the United States during World War I. Therefore, I believe that entering the war was inevitable, as well as the right choice.