Wednesday, August 9, 2017

Never Forget



Today, August 9th, marks the 72nd anniversary of the atomic bomb strike on Nagasaki, Japan. This was the second use of nuclear weapons in world history, just 3 days after the first use on the city of Hiroshima. Early on the morning of August 10th, Japan conditionally accepted the conditions of the Potsdam Declaration, effectively ending World War II. Evidence now suggests that Japan would have surrendered even without the bombing of Nagasaki due to the Russian declaration of war on August 8, 1945. The Supreme Council of Japan was already in session discussing surrender at the time Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki.

For decades that constant refrain has been that nuclear weapons are a deterrent against future aggression. There were even aspirations that we were entering a post-war existence in which major nuclear powers would never again fight conventional battles.

A year ago, in May 2016, President Barack Obama became the first sitting American president to visit an atomic bomb site when he gave a speech at Hiroshima. In his speech he attempted to inspire his audience to imagine a world in which war is no longer the solution to conflicts between nations. It's nearly inconceivable that just 16 months later, his successor has us on the precipice of a nuclear war with North Korea. Rather than giving diplomacy time to work, the UN Security Council imposed new sanctions on North Korea on August 5th, our president threatens war. This without having yet appointed an Assistant Secretary for East Asian Affairs or an Ambassador to South Korea (the most likely first strike target of any North Korean aggression - Japan is second).

Yesterday, August 8th, Donald Trump stated that if North Korea continues its aggression toward the U.S., "they will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen." He says this 2 days after the 72nd anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and 1 day before the 72nd anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki.

It is conceivable that in less than a year from assuming the presidency, Donald Trump will make the United States of America the only country in the world to use a nuclear weapon ... three times. At that point we will have lost all credibility as a world peace keeper. The millions who would die in nuclear conflict with North Korea would include millions of North Koreans, South Koreans, and Japanese. All innocent in this conflict. And for what?

As someone who grew up during the cold war and hasn't woken up in a cold sweat over nuclear annihilation since high school, I am dumbfounded that we have reached this point so quickly. But this is what happens when you elect a completely unqualified, incurious bully to the most powerful position in the free world.

I remain,

A Concerned Citizen