On 3/1/2014 11:25 AM, Higgs Boson wrote:
Songie, before you gallop away on your apocalyptic anti-nuclear
horse, allow this "idiot" to point out that "Manhattan Project" only
referred to a national effort -- in WW II, to create an atomic bomb.
Not something this "idiot" approved of, much less appreciated
incinerating two cities full of civilians.

I have seen several films, both American and Japanese, which
documented in chilling detail the utter chaos -- political and
military -- that reigned inside the Japanese Government after
Hiroshima and before Nagasaki. It is useful to make some effort to
acquaint oneself with the FACTS.

The US was not only ignorant of the situation inside Japan, but
didn't condescend to investigate it. We only blindly insisted on the
military mantra of "unconditional surrender". If our ultimatum had
been couched with SOME understanding of what was going on -- don't
tell me sources weren't available!! -- like not humiliating their
Emperor-God -- hundreds of thousands more lives could have been
spared, not to mention future generations affected by radiation.

As we know, after surrender, the U.S. turned over Japan to big
business, which basically ran the country until some stirrings of
democracy began to be felt.

How many are aware that dropping the bombs had little to do with
forestalling a putative land invasion of Japan? They were on their
asses already; no fuel, no food, no nuthin'. Ththere would have been
relatively little resistance even by suicide, once the Emperor said
give up.

Our GIs were told that dropping the bomb saved them from heavy
casualties in a putative invasion. If I'd been a grunt at that time,
believe me, I would have believed it!

What they, and the American people, were never told was that the bomb
was rushed into production to hasten surrender before the Soviet
Union could take part in the fighting, per their wartime agreement
with the Allies. The last thing the US wanted was them Commie pinkos
getting their toes into Japan -- or anywhere else. Never mind a few
million "Japs" getting toasted, between the Tokyo firebombing (see
also Dresden) and nuking Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Years ago, I made a pilgrimage to Hiroshima to bow at the memorial of
those innocents killed at 8:15 a.m.,just as the streets were full of
children on their way to school.

Boys with their toys...

The point made by this "idiot" is that a full-scale national effort
was behind the Bomb.

A similar full-scale effort to investigate and perfect scalable
desalinization is not only do-able, but of the utmost urgency.

HB (aka "the idiot" [...]

I believe the horror caused by the two bombs dropped in Japan (very
shortly after my 4th birthday) has prevented any nation from again using
any kind of nuclear weapon.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary