Grave of the Fireflies.

jonmartensen · Post by **jonmartensen** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 9:07 pm

And back on topic..... Grave of the Fireflies

kthulhu · Post by **kthulhu** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 9:22 pm

Aetherfukz wrote: You're completely freaked out it you think that the bombing of Japan was a good thing! It's not that Japan was "the good side", but neither so was the USA, the CSSR or even Germany. Nobody is "on the good side" in war. War is just cruel! Nobody wins it, besides the very Grip Reaper himself...

If your attitude is really like you wrote above there, I can only pity your lost soul, for you have no understanding of life.

Peace out,
~Aetherfukz

Mmmmm.... I'd say that the US and it's allies (along with the Soviets) were definitely on the good side in WWII. Allied forces and leaders weren't the ones invading neighboring countries (well, maybe Stalin did a bit, but that's a whole 'nother can of worms) and rounding up millions of people for torment and worse just because they fit a certain racial profile and were a convenient scapegoat to rally against. If anything, I'd say the US was too slow to get into WWII. The Allied forces have (or had) little to apologize for, in my book.

Not to say that war is pretty or glamourous, but when things shake out, you can look back and say "well, they were fighting for good, they were fighting for evil". It's not always that black and white, but it's not always muddled, either.

As for Japan, they're a good example of what letting the military have too much governmental power, as well as fervent nationalism, reap. And Japan has just as much atrocious blood from that time on its hand as the US does from the atomic bombs, if not more. Korean comfort women, the rape of Nanking, mistreatment of POWs, as well as other war crimes can be attributed to the Japanese military (and government) of that time. The atomic bombs about equal it out, but they weren't entirely the innocent irradiated victims some may point them out to be. And a land invasion may have been a far worse thing, in the long run.

One thing to think about the atomic bomb droppings: they showed the world the horror that they can wrought. The hesitation to use them again that the A-bombs created is a good thing.

And UncleMilo, Mroni's attitude, besides being his own free opinion that he is entitled to, can be found worldwide, not just here in the US. Indeed, suppression of a person's free opinion is far worse, in my book, than the opinion being suppressed. Debate him, don't berate him.

CaTaClYsM · Post by **CaTaClYsM** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 9:28 pm

btw, did the US warn japan before their nuclear strikes?

Mroni · Post by **Mroni** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 9:33 pm

You mean atomic bombs the answer is yes. we warned them by pamphlet drops that if they didn't surrender we were going to use a terrible weapon on them. I don't have a problem with us using the atoms bombs because it saved us from having to invade and lose the lives of american troops.

Mr Oni

kthulhu · Post by **kthulhu** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 10:31 pm

As well as Japanese civilians and the army based in the country. I've read that Japanese civilians (from 15 year old girls to senior citizens) were practicing hand to hand fighting with sharpened poles for a potential American invasion, since there weren't enough guns. They were ready to beat back invasion forces or die trying.

jonmartensen · Post by **jonmartensen** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 10:38 pm

BAM!, facts beat down opinions once again in the war on foo's

kthulhu · Post by **kthulhu** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 10:41 pm

Break yosef!

jonmartensen · Post by **jonmartensen** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 10:41 pm

kthulhu lays teh smacketh down

Mroni · Post by **Mroni** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 10:54 pm

lol and back on the topic of Grave of the fireflys! I thought the kid was pretty worthless actually he never did get a job!!!

Mr Oni

KenShimazu · Post by **KenShimazu** » Thu Dec 12, 2002 11:42 pm

well other reasons you may not have known for the dropping of the a-bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The Japanese Specialist something or other 101st (a scientific research team on par with the SS) had created and developed a method to drop canisters of mosquitos infected with a strain of the black plague, in other words they had perfected a bio warfare method, or were close to that. other reasons, USA not ever really trusting the USSR wanted to end the war before the 6 month hands off by the USSR was over, basically meaning the USA wanted an Asian blockade to use against Communism (thank you McCarther ya bloody bastard)

as for the hand to hand combat training of young Japanese to old, that was mainly within Kyushu the southern most island of the Archepelgo the most logical landing point for an Allied land based invasion which would of made D-day look like a cake walk (the estimated death toll for that operation if it had happend was something close to 1.5 million for the take over of just Kyushu alone, and that was just American troops supposedly)

oh, and as a side note, we all mighty americans arn't that great either you know, we did Create interment camps for Japanese Americans during the war for fear they would leek secrets and what not, uprooting over 50 thousand Americans from their homes; yet we did nothing against German or Italian americans during the war period of 1942 - 45.

and as another side note, the most decorated units during the war, contrary to popular beleif because of Hollywood and HBO, were Japanese American units on both fronts, 157th Airborn if my memmory serves me right for Germany and another Marine Unit within the Pacific. Proves what happens when guys have something to prove. (oh and they were mainly volunteers from the said interment camps we set up for the Japanese Americans)

not to mention (yes more tangents) there were many German Americans and Italian Americans who answered the call to arms for the father/mother land before USA joined.

what does this all say, nothing probably my view point is that it's all in the past and hell can't do much shit about that can we now? better to work on stuff now.

and to keep on topic, My parents grew up post war and many of my relatives died during that war fighting for what they beleived in at the time. My own exposer when i wanted to know what was it like during that time (i posed this question to my grandmother) she suggested i watch that and a few other things. So heck, from an American view point, yep you will probably see it as a "owww japan's playing the victim role" from my view point it was simply a movie showing how it was, nothing political.

Kentaro Shimazu
K.A.T. Translations