Re: "Fallout" Major Complaint!!

[Michael Kay <makay@teleport.com>]

"Weiner, Ruth" wrote:

> I did watch part of "Fallout" last night; my husband watched it all, as he
> has a greater tolerance for TV.  At best, I can say it wasn't entirely
> unbalanced; e.g., they did have a WWII veteran who said he was glad he
> didn't have to be in the invasion of Japan, and his life was probably saved.

THERE NEVER WAS GOING TO BE AN INVASION OF JAPAN!!!!!!!!!

Please, Please read "Why the United States Dropped the Bomb" in the
August/September 1990 edition of Technology Review (Published by MIT). Copies of
the pertinent pages of Truman's Diaries in his own handwriting are included. The
war was all but over. Japan was negotiating for a surrender and peace in Geneva.
The only question was how to allow the Emperor to remain a titular head. Russia,
under Stalin, was set to attack about August 10th from the Manchuria area which
would have had the effect of forcing the surrender post haste.

THE BOMB WAS DROPPED BECAUSE TRUMAN DID NOT WANT TO SHARE POST-WAR HEGEMONY WITH
STALIN!

I worked for many years at the classified U.S. Naval Defense Laboratory at
Hunters Point in San Francisco. Part of my work was on Effects of Nuclear
Weapons. At that time, almost everyone believed the "Invasion Myth" because the
diaries had not been released. For many scientists who worked on the Manhattan
Project, and for many others, the revelations in 1990 created moral problems.

The US was responsible for First Use of Atomic Weapons because of the political
(and egotistical) drives of the one person responsible for their deployment.

Therefore, I think it is a travesty of journalism to repeat this fairy tale over
and over on these programs. It was the failure of the Smithsonian Institution to
present this information in a straight-forward, no-holds barred manner that was
responsible for the ultimate non-opening of a World War II exhibit a couple of
years ago. How about putting Truman's own handwriting as a full page news
article in all papers. That would give everyone something to think about.

Please read the article before flaming away.

Michael A. Kay, ScD, CHMM
makay@teleport.com

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