Why Did Harry S. Truman Use An Atomic Bomb?

World War II was without a doubt the bloodiest conflict in human history. Quite frankly it could have been much worse. In 1945 the United States faced the real possibility of having to invade Imperial Japan. Such an invasion would have to rival D-day in scale and cost untold thousands in American blood and treasure. However, President Harry S. Truman had an alternative. Over the past several years, working in secret, some of the greatest minds in science had developed a weapon. A bomb that could level cities, a bomb that changed the basic power of the universe, an atom bomb. Truman now had a choice before him: unleash this new weapon in an attempt to force Japan to surrender or commit the United States to a massive invasion of the Japanese
This battle was an 82 day long bloodbath that lasted from April 1, 1945, to June 22, 1945, and was the last major battle of WWII. (Leckie 67, 203) The original intent for the invasion of Okinawa was for it to be used a forward operating base for the final invasion of Japan (12). However, this precursor to an invasion turned out to be the bloodiest battle of the war in the Pacific, 12,000 Americans were killed and 36,000 wounded for the Japanese 110,000 were killed and 7,800 captured. Fighting on the Island was hellish with troops deeply intrench showing their willingness to fight to the death, “The mentality evident in the kamikaze and naval operations characterized the defense of Okinawa. After allowing the Americans to become established on the greater part of the island, the Japanese bitterly defended their strongholds. It was a repetition of Iwo Jima. The Americans advanced yard by yard. Only tanks, flamethrowers, or explosive charges forced the Japanese from their caves, tunnels, and pillboxes” (Hess). They wanted to fight to the death with a blatant disregard for life. They used Kamikaze attacks to cripple American ships by flying into them, this was a deadly tactic that if successful caused major damage and big problems