Going too Far

While war is bad and should not persist if it can be ended, the way in which a war is ended entails an important moral consideration: Not everything that will more quickly end war is a morally permissible choice. Dropping an atomic bomb on a largely populated city (or anywhere) is one of these morally impermissible cases. From a Utilitarian view, one could argue that the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan maximized the good by helping to end the Second World War sooner, saving the lives of thousands of soldiers and innocents on all fronts. Although this is true, using the Little Boy put many more people in the line of fire than just the Japanese army; tens of thousands of innocent and defenseless people were immediately affected by the bomb. These are people who had never asked to be a part of the war and were no direct threat to the Allied countries. As Kant would point out, using the atomic bomb denied these individuals their subjective personhood, but rather used them as objects or as means to an end, which was immoral.

    Aside from losing one’s limbs, senses, dwelling place, possessions, and loved ones, a survivor of the bombing was likely to have additionally suffered psychological strain and/or chronic illness. The people cited in most manuscripts that reference wartime collateral are not the only ones affected. The immense quantity of radiation released due to the explosion of the bomb was enough to cause genetic mutations; thus, the progeny of those who survived the bombing as well as the children of the subsequent generations would also be affected by the bombing. If the US Army had captured and physically tortured Japanese citizens of a number equal  to that of those immediately affected by the bombing, this would not have carried as much moral consequence as would dropping the atomic bomb. This is because forms of torture affect the tortured individual directly and his/her loved ones indirectly, but neither his/her progeny nor future generations.

    Bringing up an old argument, the bombing of Hiroshima (and Nagasaki) robbed innocent citizens of Japan of their futures. As Kinue Tomoyasu said in her interview, “If it were not for the war, my two children would not have died. If it were not for the war, I wouldn't have to stay at an institution like this. I suppose the three of us would have been living together in happiness. Ah, it is so hard on me." War always claims the futures of many; however, this is different between a combatant (if s/he wished to join the army) and a noncombatant (who has not willingly put his/her life on the line but simply happens to live in a warzone). Stealing the futures of those who have not risked them for the sake of war is an act of disrespect for their wishes, for their lives, and especially in this case, for the lives of the unborn.