[Mike20437]

Gerald Holton (Reflections on Modern Terrorism) defines terrorism as “a method of coercion of a population or its leadership or both through fear or traumatization.” He describes three different types of terrorism: Type I terrorism consists of acts by individuals or small groups that aim to impose terror on other individuals and groups, and through them indirectly on their governments. Type II terrorism is the imposition by a government on groups of local or foreign populations. Type III terrorism is carried out by a substantially larger group of individuals, often combinations of states and individual groups, and is aimed directly at a national population. Gordon places Hiroshima/Nagasaki in the Type II category, while he puts the 9/11 attacks in the new Type III category. He makes no judgment on whether one type of terrorism is better or worse than another, but I think most Americans view the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a necessary part of ending World War II. They would argue that we were in a declared war with Japan at the time and that it was a military operation designed to save U.S. lives and bring about the close of the war.

There are many books and articles that go into more detail on this subject, and you will find many people – including many Americans — who say the bombing was unnecessary and immoral. For what it’s worth, I don’t think any American would find such high levels of civilian deaths acceptable these days.

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Name : Mike20437, Gender : M, City : Greendale, State : WI, Country : United States, 

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