[Leaplist] Paul Again

[Bob Foxworth]

> > And I'd argue that Hiroshima, while horiffic, was only horrific
> > in terms of the means of destruction - certainly there were
> > many other actions that were as destructive, for example,
> > the Dresden fire-bombings killed, at a minimum, 35,000 and
> > wreaked massive destruction. I doubt the dead much cared
> > whether they were killed by fusion or napalm.
>
> I believe the number at Dresden was closer to 250,000 (many
disappeared
> w/o records due to their refuge status) .... It burned for better than
a
> week after the raids, caused so much turbulence at 20,000 ft that
> subsequent bomber raids had to be diverted around Dresden for flight
safety.
>
> I also agree that it was completely justified, & saved dozens of
> thousands of lives of American soldiers, and probably millions of
lives
> of Japanese civilians. Godspeed, General Tibbets.
>
> -- 
>
> William A. Mahaffey III


One thing that some of the younger folk in our midst seem to be
"learning" is that World war II was a time when the big bad United
States came out of nowhere with this huge bomb that, all of a
sudden, killed so many Japanese civilians.

While losing about 100k civilians in one day is certainly not to be
wished for, if any alternative existed, it is certainly not a new thing
in the historical context. The revisionists would have you believe
that we fought each other with little more than hand weapons
and small aircraft up until the A bombs were "maliciously" used.

By the time 1945 began, the US had pretty much complete air
domination of the skies over Japan. This fact was not enough
to persuade the Japanese to surrender, in fact they gave every
indication that surrender, then, was not an option. The US
then would be faced with an eventual ground invasion, planned
for Honshu in early 1946, with expected tremendous loss of life.

What is generally NOT known today is the history of the raids
over major cities using thermite incendiaries. Between 8 and
11 March 1945 we launched 820 B-29 bomber flights from
Tinian in the Marianas, led by Curtis LeMay. During that period,
Tokyo was destroyed in a firestorm that covered 16 square
miles, killing an estimated 110,000 civilians in one day. more
than either nuclear device killed on the day either of them
was dropped. Other major cities were destroyed as well.
Hiroshima was one of the few that had been spared so that a
good damage assessment (before/after use of the planned
A-bomb deployment) could be done. Assuming of course that
the Trinity test shot (New Mexico, 16 July) would be successful.

The thermite raids were begun because high altitude
bombing using conventional HE ordnance was proving
ineffective from 30K feet due to wind gusting etc, and
accuracy for thermite was somewhat less critical, due
to the type of wood construction that was used.

This happened 5 (FIVE) months before the A bombs were used.

Those who died, many in cellars and bunkers, in Tokyo
likely ALL endured protracted great suffering, compared to the
many thousands who died instantly in the A bomb explosions.
(yes, many more did not).

The fact that the Imperial Gov't of Japan would stand by and
watch their cities be destroyed by fire, and not stop the war
(as we offered) shows that the usage of the A bombs became
the only option we had left, by then, to make them surrender.

And if they did not surrender, it was projected that we would
then lose a million men in the planned invasion of the Ryukyus
and up to the Homeland, starting with Skikoku and Kyushu.

Is there any school today that teaches this? Are there teachers
today who even know, or believe, this?

Yes this is OT, but I have to come in here and comment.

I met Theodore Van Kirk at a Tampa air show a few years ago.
I never got to meet Col. Tibbets, I wish I could have done
so and been able to shake his hand.

- Bob