EDITORIAL
r
Hiroshima blast
lesson for future
Fifty years ago, the United .States wiped out 60 percent
of the Japanese city Hiroshima with a single atomic
bomb.
When President Truman decided to use a bomb that
has more power than 20,000 tons of TNT, he put an end
to » devastating war and introduced the world to the
atomic age,
"When that missile strut k the earth, it blew up in the
greatest man-made explosion in the history of the
world," wrote Newsweek magazine in 1045.
Since then, the United Status has been both criticized
and praised for its decision to fight the Japanese with
atomic weapons. Some sav the bomb was needed to save
American lives. Others claim it was Inhumane, killing
too many innocent people.
In a recent poll of Americans, only 44 percent support
Truman's decision to drop the bomb. Hut in a similar
poll 50 years ago. an overwhelming number of Ameri
cans said they approved of the bomb
Regardless of how Americans view the atomic bomb,
what happened at Hiroshima during World War II must
never be forgotten. All Americans should be educated on
how America wiped out two Japanese cities with the
most deadly weapon over known. People need to know
the si iontific ami hislorit a! signifu am e of tin* atomi<
bomb,
hifforts to remember the bomb are steering in the
wrong direction. Recently people lobbied for u United
States stamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of the
bomb. The proposed stamp featured a mushroom cloud
design, resembling what the Japanese cities Hiroshima
and Nagasaki looked like after the two bombs were
dropped.
Stamps are meant to glorify events in U.S. history,
and there's no reason to celebrate the loss of 210.000
Japanese men, woman and children. Printing a "mush
room cloud" stamp would Ihj offensive to people whose
ancestors died from the bomb. How would Americans
feel if the Japanese printed a stamp of Pearl Harbor? We
« an lx* thankful the U.S. Postal Service canceled plans to
print the stamp.
Museum displays about the bomb also have Ixven can
celed recently because thoyare too sensitive for those
who remember what happened.
Instead of celebrating our victory over the Japanese,
Americans of all generations need to lx* educated on the
events of World War II and the effects of the atomic
bomb In a recent poll. 60 percent of Americans didn’t
know which president ordered the bomb to lx» dropped.
That's a sad statistic.
For the millions of people born after 1945. it's impos
sible to imagine the suffering caused by the atomic
bomb. It s important to educ ate the ignorant to make sure
everyone realizes the serious consequences of Truman's
decision. It would be far too tragic for historv to repeat
itself.
Ott'^on Daily
Emerald
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ViOtAT»ON..
■ OPINION
Presidential hopefuls looking for votes
Primp A. J. Font \n v
Since Hi ftntli week, I
decided that 1 would rover
dial favorite topic of every
columnist's heart, presidential
handit upping. It may he early,
but if they've started running,
then 1 had hotter start covering
So. in alphalietical order, to he
fair, here's a list of people who
are already or are prolwbly going
to be in the race
Lamar Alexander. Tins former
governor of Tennessee and Sei •
rotary of Education is running
on the "Washington Outsider"
angle Mo already has a catchy
slogan “Cut their pay and send
them home." which is what he
intends to do with Congress
Although he is well-respected
hv moderates of both parties and
some far-right conservatives, he
may lai k the charisma and sta
mina fur the long haul A poten
tial vice president
Pot Buchanan That’s right,
the COP's Brutus uf 1992 is at it
again look for this militant, iso
lationist conservative to make
light ol the great rift between
Republican moderates and right
wingers He doesn't have a
replacement player’s chance
against Crv*g Maddux. rs|ns tolly
after the disastrous GOP Con
vention of 1993.
Bill Clinton As far as I've
heard. Clinton still is the presi
dent Things may look bleak for
Bubba now. but he’s been here
before. If his staff um succeed in
painting the Republicans as
ruthless and cold, which
shouldn't be that hard, he just
may squeeze out yet another
term.
Boh Dole Newt and his foam
mg-at-the-mouth cohorts in the
Mouse have (teen the best thing
to happen to Senate Majority
Leader Dole Me is playing the
elder statesman, attd has had the
luxury of loosening up on The
Cite Slum and in other informal
settings. Me has boon bitter and
callous during presidential bids
in ihe past, but if he can keep
his attitude chipper, he can't In
beat. It's Dole's race to lose at
this point He r an get the mon
ey. the moderates and enough
conservatives to make the Chris
tum Coalition happy.
Hob Dornan Hep Roman, K
Calif . the loosest of the loose
cannon* in the House, is run
ning at this point apparently just
to make Clinton look bad Dor
nan's < hanros are slim He is so
conservative that he makes Kush
Limbangh look like Ralph Nad
er. lbs influence will, like
Buchanan's, perhaps widen the
gap between the GOP'* moder
ate and conservative factions.
Phil Gramm Senator
Gramm's biggest lead at this
point is in dollars He had a
large surplus after his last cam
paign for the Senate, and he is
very well connected in the high
er echelons of Republican fund
raising Ethical questions have
arisen right and left regarding
Gramm, quite notably in the
most recent issue of The Nation,
and his negative charm may
make Dole look like a cuddly
old grandpa He is second to
Dole in the GOP rankings now,
hut new competitors from the
moderate sector of the (.()P may
soon take his place if he can’t
gain at least a little charm
/in hard Ttigar, Sen. Lugar. R
Ind . officially entered the race
last week His name re< ogtlitlOtl
is low, hut he is very well
respected as a Senate moderate
Lugar's un»r may be stellar, hut
he may not have an angle or the
charisma necessary to differenti
ate him from the field.
Alien Speiter: I must admit,
that of the people truly running,
Sen. Specter, R-Penn.. is my jier
sonal favorite He has already
handed out pamphlets in New
Hampshire that sav "Join Him
In the Effort to Restore Ameri
can Greatness Through Tradi
tional Republican Values " He is
strongly pro-choice, and
believes that a moderate such as
himself must In* elected presi
dent in order to ameliorate what
he i.ulls “a party divided by
intolerant e and bigotry
He has already stood up
strongly against the conserve
There may he smart
ones, and fine
politicians at that, hut
Mr should still he eon
eerned at the lack of
true innovation.
lives of the GOP in the Christian
Coalition When their leader.
Ralph Reed, announced that
abortion would be a litmus test
in 1996. Specter said. “If Ralph
Reed says I’m unfit to be presi
dent because I'm pro-choice. I’m
prepared to stand up and look
him in the eye and tell him he’s
wrong — and raise hell about
it.”
If Specter can paint himself as
fiscally conservative and social
ly liberal in the mold of the hot
GOP governors such as Hill
Weld of Massac husetts or Chris
tine Whitman of New Jersey, he
has a real shot. At the very least.
In- may open the doors of the l
Republic an Party to the 20th
century on six ial issues
Pete Mihail Wilson's racist
and unconstitutional Proposi
tion 187 has caught on like wild
fire in the new "angry white
male" electorate, and this could
take him to the top However, if
this issue backfires in the courts,
ns the smart money say s it will,
he c ould lose his popularity
Also, during his victorious
reelect ion campaign for the gov
ernorship of California he
pledged that he would not run
for president in 1996.
So there you have it folks, my
field of nine. There may he
smart ones, and fine politicians
a! that, but we should still be
conc erned at the lac k of true
innovation
Although Specter may he a hit
progressive, none have shown a
propensity for the type of lead
ership which this country has
seen in its finest presidents,
such ns Jefferson. Madison and
Franklin !) Roosevelt
Hopefully a leader will arise,
for 1996 or the near future, who
can truly lead this nation for
ward
Pritno A I Fontana is a colum
nist for the Emerald