Is the U.S. Crazy?

[Half-Century Man]

79. I once took a multi-discipline course on the Atomic Bomb .

History, Philosophy and the Physics behind it all. We used Howard Rhodes's "The Making Of The Atomic Bomb (1986) as our main text and a used a several hundred page university generated inter discipline work book.

Toward the end of the course we were asked by the professor of Philosophy to take a stance on the moral issue of using an atomic weapon as we did. One of my class mates in justifying his position opposing the use as we did, suggested this: He researched 1945 maps of Japan and found a bay with good beaches and clear sea side approaches. It was centrally located on Honshu (the central island) surrounded by mountains yet with good roads ( I think it might have been Owase. I seem to remember the island to the north).
He suggested what might have been a more humane course of action. Trick the Imperial Japan's military into the valley and use the bombs there.
We (the United States) had very specific landing site preparatory strategy. It was well known by the Japanese war planners. If we focused our attention there, they would have had too as well.
I know this was 68 years retrospect, but an intriguing idea.