34 replies to this topic

[adonis]

Committing suicide? Sounds a little farfetched....

Well happens to be a fact that many Japanese soilders,civilians, as well as Japanese supporters on Islands in the Pacific commited suicide rather than be taken prisoner. 1.)feudal Japan was a society where family honor and bushido wereheld in the highest respects. Especially since the majority of the population participated in types of ancestor worship. 2.)in some cases the Japanese had been so creal to the inhabitats of the island they greatly feared the retribution that would be done to them. Also American soldiers were described as "devils" to the Japanese populace. I remember reading an article were the Japanese belive that the only way to become a Marine was to kill your parents. There was indeed a great fear among thier people about being taken alive.

[Waser Lave]

Committing suicide? Sounds a little farfetched....

http://www.outcastearth.com/arcana.htm

Go down to SUICIDE CLIFFS, SAIPAN.

It's been in their history since the Samurais. Look up Seppuku too.

http://en.wikipedia....attle_of_Saipan

24,000 killed
5,000 suicides
921 prisoners

http://xmb.stuffucan...ad.php?tid=1111

[Tetiel]

Committing suicide? Sounds a little farfetched....

http://home.kc.rr.com/casualties/

The major fighting for Saipan was over in early July, as several hundred frightened Japanese civilians committed suicide by leaping to their deaths from the cliffs above Marpi Point. Before the point was secured, 4th Division Marines had observed numerous instances of armed Japanese soldiers forcing the civilians over the cliffs to the jagged rocks below,^45 and later in the war, MacArthur's intelligence would report on captured documents and prisoner interrogations which detailed Japanese units killing their own wounded if they could not be evacuated from field hospitals.^46 Altogether, this model for the invasion of Japan had cost the U.S. 3,426 dead and 13,099 wounded to kill 23,811 Japanese defenders. Less than 300 Japanese were taken prisoner, most because they <page 535> were too badly wounded to either fight on or commit a form of ritual suicide, hara-kiri.^47

EDIT: damn you laser! *shakes fist*

[Will]

Committing suicide? Sounds a little farfetched....

Yeah you're right. They wouldn't consider surrender dishonorable or anything.

[Tetiel]

I think Hiroshima was for the most part a civilian city, as the US had already bombed most of military Japan into oblivion. They had run out of places to bomb almost

I think a lot of American citizens have to look outside of their classes and notebooks for different opinions on this, because you won't find alternative views.

http://www.nuclearfi...e/1940/1945.htm

A good summary of the events.

It was Nagasaki then. I know that one of them was industrial. I'm a bit fuzzy about the specifics though.

[adonis]

I think Hiroshima was for the most part a civilian city, as the US had already bombed most of military Japan into oblivion. They had run out of places to bomb almost

I think a lot of American citizens have to look outside of their classes and notebooks for different opinions on this, because you won't find alternative views.

http://www.nuclearfi...e/1940/1945.htm

A good summary of the events.

exactly unfortunately the victors of wars write history not the losers. America is not far from a totalitarian regiem in the the ways it retards the information that thier citizens grow to know as fact. Instead of burning books we just simply remove them from the classrooms and libraries. As well I bet few Americans that lives outside of the ww2 era even know about the internment camps which we had that treated ALL Japanese Americans as P.O.W.'s

[Frizzle]

exactly unfortunately the victors of wars write history not the losers.

You mean "The winners write history and the losers write poetry"?

[pyke]

exactly unfortunately the victors of wars write history not the losers. America is not far from a totalitarian regiem in the the ways it retards the information that thier citizens grow to know as fact. Instead of burning books we just simply remove them from the classrooms and libraries. As well I bet few Americans that lives outside of the ww2 era even know about the internment camps which we had that treated ALL Japanese Americans as P.O.W.'s

I think every society is guilty of barring some history. I mean in Japan, everyone treats the dropping of the bombs as the most horrific act of all time, yet elect to completely ignore the past atrocities of their own nation

I just want to provide an alternative viewpoint to the topic that some people might not be fully aware of.

[Shadiel]

(Any idea why they didn't bomb Tokyo?)

Shortly before Hiroshima, the US had already dropped a shit-ton of bombs on Tokyo.

As well I bet few Americans that lives outside of the ww2 era even know about the internment camps which we had that treated ALL Japanese Americans as P.O.W.'s

As a sophomore, I can assure you that the subject of the internment camps is taught.
Hell, I learned that in seventh grade.

Edited by Shadiel, 28 March 2008 - 12:12 PM.