Fateful Decision: The Dropping of the Atomic Bomb

The dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki evoked varied responses from around the world.

By Flint Whitlock On August 7, 1945, the day after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, President Harry S. Truman announced, “The force from which the sun draws its power has been loosed against those who brought war to the Far East. And the end is not yet. If they [the Japanese] do not now accept our terms [of surrender], they may expect a rain of ruin from the air.” The world was sick of war, commentators said, and many Americans felt that the loss of two cities full of Japanese civilians wa