Hiroshima and Nagasaki

elethiomel made me think about these things and what happened there. Some debate there led me to reading wikipedia articles on the bombing of Japan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki

I think the thing that got me most was the description of the japanese reactions to it all. Firstly in the actual raids. In both raids the bombers were detected incoming and air raid alerts set off. However, both times when they realised there were only two or three planes they assumed it was just recon and gave the all clear.

I have images of the blitz with people resolutely huddled in shelters as the bombs go off around them. My understanding is that there was always an alert before the bombers came in and that people usually at least had some warning and were expecting the bombs. In hiroshima and nagasaki though the all clear had been given and as the nuclear devices detonated the people of those cities didn't even realise that they were in any danger.

The other thing that struck me was the section on "Japanese realization of the bombing". The description of the japanese officer sent to hiroshima to find out why they were no longer responding on the radio.

It was generally felt at Headquarters that nothing serious had taken place, that it was all a terrible rumor starting from a few sparks of truth.

The staff officer went to the airport and took off for the southwest. After flying for about three hours, while still nearly 100 miles (160 km) from Hiroshima, he and his pilot saw a great cloud of smoke from the bomb. In the bright afternoon, the remains of Hiroshima were burning.

Their plane soon reached the city, around which they circled in disbelief. A great scar on the land, still burning, and covered by a heavy cloud of smoke, was all that was left. They landed south of the city, and the staff officer immediately began to organize relief measures, after reporting to Tokyo.

Its another of those things that I can't comprehend at all. I just find it hard to believe that such a thing on such a scale really happened. I know it happened from an intellectual point of view but there is still an element of disbelief.

I just felt that this had affected me enough that I really should make comment on it.

(no subject)

This one is dedicated to twicedead...

Recently I've seent the same post pop up on many people's LJ. At first I thought maybe it was irony or some kind of joke or maybe malicious virus/trojan/whatever that was posting crap to people's LJs. Then as it came up a couple more times I realised that people were serious...

The text I found was:

( Its crap, I warn you )

I decided that as an exercise I would try to start up a meme of sorts... Probably more an anti-meme I suppose...


True Story. There was a live journal friends page where peoples live journals could be aggregated. One person posted a story of dubious origin and laughable content and proclaimed it to be true despite having only the word of an equally ill informed individual to vouch for this. One person posted original content talking about issues and just themselves. The first person was branded an irritating twat, the second has a LJ worth reading.

If you are an irritating twat then post the christian story in your live journal. If you're not then post something else (and please god don't just copy and paste this).


For any that have alreayd posted this story then please don't take this personally. You have laudable motives but you are allowed to put these things in your own words and then people might stop and think about them rather than just going "Me too!!!!11!!11!!!!" and pasting them in their journal, only to never think about them again.

Or at the very least find a better story to mindlessly propogate...