06 August 2008

"Now The Sun Has Come To Earth... - The Legacy Of Hiroshima And Nagasaki

Crossposted from sometimes - 2

WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS A VERY DISTURBING PHOTOGRAPH OF DEAD BODIES FROM THE HIROSHIMA BLAST. IF YOU CAN'T TAKE IT, PLEASE GO READ SOMETHING ELSE. BUT I SINCERELY HOPE THAT YOU LOOK AND SEE AND THINK AND FEEL AND UNDERSTAND. AND WAKE UP.

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Sixty-three years ago today, the United States of America committed what is arguably the most serious war crime in history:


The sun is burning in the sky
Strands of clouds go slowly drifting by
In the park the lazy breeze
Are joining in the flowers, among the trees
And the sun burns in the sky


Now the sun is in the West
Little kids go home to take their rest
And the couples in the park
Are holdin' hands and waitin' for the dark
And the sun is in the West


Now the sun is sinking low
Children playin' know it's time to go
High above a spot appears
A little blossom blooms and then draws near
And the sun is sinking low

Now the sun has come to Earth
Shrouded in a mushroom cloud of death
Death comes in a blinding flash
Of hellish heat and leaves a smear of ash
And the sun has come to Earth


Now the sun has disappeared
All is darkness, anger, pain and fear
Twisted, sightless wrecks of men
Go groping on their knees and cry in pain
And the sun has disappeared








Recorded by Simon and Garfunkel

Please check out this website: Hiroshima And Nagasaki Remembered

The top picture was taken by my little sister Lindsey Bush before a tornado in Ohio.

The mushroom cloud picture is the actual photograph of the atomic cloud over Nagasaki 9 August 1945.

The final picture is from the Robert L. Capp collection of ten photographs of the immediate aftermath of Hiroshima. For more information go to Atomic Tragedy.


This article from 'tv news lies'








Written by Reggie
Monday, 04 August 2008 14:36
On August 6 and 9, 1945. After six months of intense firebombing of 67 other Japanese cities, the nuclear weapon "Little Boy" was dropped on the city of Hiroshima on Monday, August 6, 1945, followed on August 9 by the detonation of the "Fat Man" nuclear bomb over Nagasaki. These are to date the only attacks with nuclear weapons in the history of warfare.

In Remembrance of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

When the bombs were dropped I was very happy. The war would be over now, they said, and I was very happy. The boys would be coming home very soon they said, and I was very happy. We showed ‘em, they said, and I was very happy. They told us that the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had been destroyed, and I was very happy. But in August of 1945 I was only ten years old, and I was very, very happy.

The crew of the B-29 was so young and heroic, and in the photo they also looked very happy. For some reason, I clearly remember the name of the pilot, Paul Tibbets. Of course I remember the name of the plane, the Enola Gay. And oh yes, I remember the name of the bomb. It was called Little Boy. That made me smile.

I was so proud to be an American that day because we had done something so remarkable. They said we were the first. We were Americans. We were powerful. But they didn’t say that Little Boy had killed 66,000 people with its huge fireball that fateful day in August. They didn’t say that Hiroshima was not a military target, but a city filled with men and women and children and animals who had no idea they were about to die so horribly. When you’re ten, they don’t always tell you everything.

I don’t think anyone made as big a fuss over the second plane, or its crew. Are they even in the Smithsonian? Second best doesn’t count, I suppose, but I remember wondering why they had done it again. Wouldn’t the war be over anyway, like they said? Weren’t the boys coming home very soon? Hadn’t they already showed ‘em how strong we were in Hiroshima? So they told me that the second bomb was called Fat Man, and that made me smile.

So I was even prouder to be an American that second day. They said this would be the end for sure, and after all, these people were the enemy and you kill the enemy when you can. But they didn’t tell me that Fat Boy had killed 39,000 human beings with another fireball on another day in August. They didn’t tell me that Nagasaki was not a military target, but a city filled with…well, you know. They didn’t even tell me that there were horses trapped in the flames of Nagasaki, because I loved horses and that would have made me sad. But when you’re ten, they don’t tell you everything.

Today I’m no longer ten, and I am no longer happy when bombs fall. And the names Fat Man and Little Boy no longer make me smile because I now know the devastation and horror of burned bodies and twisted metal that result from the mushroom clouds. And I am ashamed that on this day Americans don’t stop to remember what was done. And I am horrified that my government has just killed thousands of defenseless men and women and children and animals who were not the enemy, and that the silence of America is deafening.

Today, I am so very sad that many young people don’t even know about the Enola Gay and the mission of its crew. And I am so terribly ashamed that the war we have just waged has been so devoid of the reality of death and pain. They haven’t told us about the thousands of civilians they have killed. They haven’t shown us the devastation they have caused. They withhold the true numbers of our own military who die each day. They never mention the hundreds who have been terribly wounded. War is surgical and sanitized, they tell us, and a very effective way to liberate people. They speak to us as if we all were ten.

George W. Bush is not ten. He has announced to the world that he, as the leader of this great nation, has the right to use nuclear weapons once again. This time, he says, he has the right to char men and women and children and animals if he “suspects" their leaders of being a threat to us. He is not ten. He really isn’t. Then why is he so very happy? And why, please tell me, is he still smiling?

2 comments:

  1. The deaths and suffering caused by the incendiary bombings of japan exceeded the horror of the atomic bombings by more than a hundredfold, yet you never hear of it.But as the world continues to devolve, you can rest assured that one day soon a rogue nation will aquire the capability of nuclear weapons. And no doubt, will once again unleash the Genie from the bottle...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Anonymous,

    And a very Merry Christmas to you, too!

    I just watched the old "Duck and Cover" video from the 1950s. I have been living with atomic doomsayers all my life. It might happen. It might not. I happened once. Twice.

    If it is the Hukam of Vaheguru, it will happen again. If it is not the Hukam of Vaheguru, it won't happen again.

    I'm not worrying about it.

    Neither am I forgetting the victims of the Bomb.

    ReplyDelete

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