Today I was reminded of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by someone. While I knew that the memorial days of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were right around now I was chided for not knowing the exact dates. I don’t see this as particularly damning, considering I’ve been able to commit very few dates to memory.
My entire conversation with this particular person was focused on her belief that America is not teaching Americans anything about the atomic bomb. There is apparently a misinformed idea here that Americans are trying to completely remove our second biggest mistake as a country from history. I don’t feel that is entirely incorrect, however it is unfair. It is unfair because every country has a part of their history they would rather not remember. For America it is our genocide and harassment of the country’s indigenous peoples. Followed closely by utilizing a weapon so destructive that the physical and mental effects are still being felt by today’s generation in Japan.
But Americans do learn about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I’ve seen the photographs, heard the stories. In elementary school I was taught to make paper cranes on a day we learned all about the terrible bombing. However, it isn’t something we learn about every year of our schooling. And the atomic bombing is rarely on our minds. We can’t feel ashamed all the time.
Japan for it’s part did some less than noble things in mainland Asia in the past. Some of which people still don’t admit was wrong. And let’s not forget the reason that America finally officially joined World War II.
But this back and forth is meaningless. In war everyone is to blame. “In war there are only losers,” one Japanese person pointed out to another Japanese man when I was being reminded another part of America’s lamentable history (this time Okinawa).
Thinking about history it seems there are three general mentalities. There are those who’d rather forget it. There are those who want to remember and learn from it. And there are those who can’t move beyond the anger or pain of the moment. I don’t blame any of these people who belong to the first and last groups. But I hope never to be a part of either of them.
In a situation where someone wants to remind you of your country’s unhappy histories I think it is important to acknowledge their pain. There is no quicker way to open a dialog than to let someone know you are listening.
Still, I can’t change or apologize for the actions of men who were born before my parents. I don’t want to forget their actions either. But I want to move past apologies and the undercurrents of hostility. I hope to arrive eventually at a shared respect in the current moment. A respect that includes using all of our shared history as a species to create a better present and a more promising future.
In the case of the atomic bomb I think it means working to make sure no one ever uses one again. It also means using the experience to educate everyone world wide, not just of the effects of atomic weaponry or even of weapons of mass destruction, but of the the effects of war. Everyone is wrong and losing every moment that we act in violent selfish ways. That is what I learn from Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I can only hope that the next person I speak to about such things here in Japan will agree with me.
4 Comments
amen!
Every war in recent history has ended with a cry that we no longer use one weapon or another. Mustard gas from World War I was banned. The first Gulf War turned attention to depleted uranium weapons and many are still calling for their ban. Vietnam and Gulf War veterans alike are still seeking official recognition of the various maladies that have beset them since their service, much of which is blamed on the weapons and chemicals they were exposed to during their wartime operations.
Attempts to make cleaner weapons, smarter bombs… attempts to sanitize war by limiting the weapons that may be used miss the point: war is hell. It is the very definition of uncivilized. And while our ancestors, who had little to lose, may have been quick to pick up arms against their neighbors, it can be only the last resort for an advanced society such as ours.
When you say you hope nuclear weapons are never used again, I hope you mean that we never, ever enter into another war (and quickly extricate ourselves from current conflicts). We should not minimize the moral dilemma of entering into war by creating rules to wage it, instead, we should reinforce the cultural institutions that keep modern societies from ever entering into it.
Mmm…Think about this:war is in us,it’s an acient instinct,like feeding,some people are more violent than other but when problems seem difficult to solve,it is sadly normal to fight.And if with an enough powerful weapon you can frighten your enemies and stop the fight,won’t it save more lifes than it takes?I don’t mean i like war nor nuclear bombs,I just thought about it.
And forgive me if there are too many writing errors because I’m spanish and I don’t speak english very well
Casey, you are absolutely that ending war, not the shelving atomic weapons should be the goal. For my part I’ll take the end of atomic weapons (and the like) and hope that war follows closely behind. I couldn’t agree with you more.
borja, I agree with you too, sort of. Humans are animals and we can observe in nature territory disputes. All war is ultimately a territory dispute. However, I’ve always found it interesting that we seem to think we’ve risen above being a mere animal. No doubt our technology has advanced to an amazing level, but if we are still getting involved in wars left and right it suggests to me that as a species we haven’t advanced our humanity passed the level of any other animal. For this reason I’d suggest that as a species we haven’t evolved, in a truly meaningful way, beyond any other animal. Until people like Gandhi and the Dali Lama are remarkable not for their humanity, but for getting there first, we are just apes with fancy toys.