A History of Bombing by Sven Lindqvist & Linda Haverty Rugg

Author:Sven Lindqvist & Linda Haverty Rugg [Lindqvist, Sven & Rugg, Linda Haverty]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General, Sociology, Social Science, History, Military, 20th Century, Political Science, Modern, Weapons, Aviation
ISBN: 9781565848160
Publisher: New Press, The
Published: 1999-01-01T16:00:00+00:00

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The Japanese mass media were silent. Only rumors reached the Emperor. He risked all ot his prestige by asking to be taken to the river. There he got out of his car. On the shores of the river lay thousands of corpses, piled up with almost mechanical precision. The tidewater had come in and gone out, leaving the charred corpses like driftwood. He said nothing. There was nothing to say. He suddenly realized that Japan had lost the war.™

2 2 7

Many of Japan's leaders wero struck by that same insight. A quarter of the capital in ashes, a million people homeless, 100,000 horrifying deaths - the first mass attack against Tokyo put the city into a slate of shock. With a minimum amount of coordination between their military and diplomatic actions, the Allies could have used this state of shock to offer concrete terms for peace. The only condition that they already knew the Japanese would never negotiate - keeping their emperor - would also serve Allied interests. There was no reason for either side to want to prolong the war.3'

But the Americans were too busy patting each other on the back. Telegrams of congratulation poured in to LeMay. Air force headquarters in Washington. D.C.. was ecstatic. Arnold was jubilant. Not only was Tokyo the greatest victory of the American air force ever, they said, but the Japanese had been served up the biggest military catastrophe in the history of war.™

But nobody bothered to take political advantage of the situation.

The American press described the military destruction, not the human cost. There were no figures for the number of civilian victims. The Secretary of Defense, Henry Stimson, who had the numbers, was the only one who seemed troubled Arnold assured him that they had done everything in their power to keep civilian losses down, and Stimson believed him

- or pretended to.™

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