Thank you George for writing the script. George is one of my favorites of the authors for Simon’s channels and pod casts. He’s research and dedication to primary source material, and raw empathy is so prevalent in all his work.
I enjoy many of Simon's writers, but theres 2 that have stood out in quality to me personally, George for his utter in depth research he goes to (there are other's who do, dont get me wrong), and Danny (because Danny) Also Jen's editing this episode was top notch, Music was spot on, and the dimming in music for the respectful moments, was great, thankyou both... and Simon too
I haven't been to the Hiroshima one yet, but I got walked through the Nagasaki one by a survivor and her grandson. She told me stories and showed me people she knew in the pictures. I cried like a baby. She was so kind and gracious. Her grandson translated for us. She said she was glad I was there because people need to know. To never forget and to never let it happen again. I still tear up every time I go through it with whichever family member comes to visit. I make them all go once.
A military unit made up of children; created to perform suicide missions; responding to the world's first atomic bombing… It's horrific turtles all the way down…
I don't recall how old I was when I first learned about Hiroshima. One of the pictures I still remember was of a room of survivors standing in somewhat odd poses with flowers tattooed on their skin. They had been at just the right distance to have survived, but the heat had burned the patterns of their clothing onto the skin. They were burned all over, and could only stand perfectly still to avoid the worse pain of moving their burned bodies. I hate war.
same, currently both sides of my extended family are effected by the Ukraine Russian war, and some i haven't seen or heard from since it started. but on the Hiroshima the first time i learned of it, it was the shadow's of the victims who didn't even have bodies or even ashes stuck in the moment they passed away in, my skin crawls and i can still see the shadow's when i close my eye's and think about it. war is awful but the weapons people invent for it are horrifying. i would like to see a world were wars dont exist irl instead just settle it in video games let the leaders just have a pvp 1 on 1 battle online, i doubt that will ever happen but that is what i wish people would do some day.
I remember, because I remember the teacher giving the lesson, I was 12, it was never mentioned before. He showed us the images of the shadows that had once been people, he told us the horrors of the radiation and the absolute hell on earth it created without sugarcoating and absolutely without justifying it. I’m forever grateful for that teacher for emphasising reality and understanding we were capable of learning difficult lessons even though we were young, absolutely incredible man. Absolute horrific incident. As you say, I hate war.
This was one of the toughest videos from Simon I’ve ever watched. As a former Army Special Forces Officer, war is hell, no matter the justification. On one of my deployments, we reacted to an IED that hit civilian vehicles. I’ll never forget an injured child calling for their dead parents.
they are obviously crying from shock and maybe also pain, but not knowing if they understand immediately their parents are just GONE that is the most fucked up part atleast for me, and i have only heard and read stories im not even from your country but thank you for your service man
@@BonShula we can suppose that your stupid remark is based on the fact that you never went to war and have to kill someone. Either it or you are just a person who had lost your humanity
@@BonShula yup, agreed; the only thing that’s bothered me is civilians who get caught in the crossfire, like the situation I mentioned above. Not that we did anything wrong; it’s just tragic to see (and hear).
Watching this video I remember back to 2017 when there was talk about possible nuclear conflict between the US and North Korea. There were talking head pundits actually trying to justify the saber rattling claiming a nuclear attack is not as bad as they make it out in the movies. No matter how horrific it was then, it would be incomprehensible today with modern Hydrogen bombs that dwarf the atomic bombs used in Japan and can strike multiple targets at once. Humanity must endeavor to make sure the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the last humans to ever experience this Hell on Earth.
Threads, the 1984 British TV drama, probably shows the best impression of a nuclear attack and its aftermath. Terminator 2, Judgement Day also has a nuclear attack scene that is also scarily realistic.
4:50 same with the voluntary fire department in rural areas. We all felt obligated to join to protect our community. And they have a kids program in germany. There you only do training or support. At the floodings the kids helped fill the sand bags for example
The Hiroshima Peace Museum is one of the most harrowing places you will ever see, and if you can you should. Entry is free, and you can rent an audio tour to tell you about the exhibits, since most people will not be able to read the Japanese text. You simply enter the number next to each exhibit and it will tell you what it is. There’s also the ‘atom bomb dome’ in the park; a building that was nearly directly under the blast and is still standing, albeit with a little intervention to shore it up. And of course, the Children’s Peace Monument, with the statue of Sadako, surrounded by booths of thousands of paper cranes.
Nothing says "We are completely and utterly fucked" like having to put literal children into the armed forces. That said, at least most of the members of the unit are still alive.
The Hitler Youth, boys as young as in their early teens, were also deployed in the final days of the fall of the Reich. They were serving in the German civil defense and in the defensive militia called the Volkssturm.
And they still had guerilla fighters in other countries who refused to believe it or just refused to quit fighting, doesn't make it a necessary option, it was more for the future wars than it was for that one, such foolish creatures we are, we've experienced the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again and again and again and we still think that we can do ONE last MASSIVE terror to mold the morrow-and it never works in anyones favor. It only incites the creative psychopaths that rule over us all in their varying ways-I'm also not a fan of such weak offensives, not gonna lie, before I even really understood the situation I felt sick that this nation I was born in would be too afraid to actually fight the war they're in and instead would make for us all, a monster-for fear of losing men in a war, that is what war is, it's losing your warriors not fire-bombing//decimating innocents(and yeah tho, the kamikaze shit is wild lololololol, I feel ya, sorry I realize I probably am coming off as preachy/aggro, I am blazed fam, and don't mean to nor intend to, I just realized I have that fucking weird feeling of trying to climb up some soap box LMFAO lolololololol i hate it all I HATE ALL OF IT lmfao! Much love sorry I'm just a wonky one :D )
@@ScooterinAB thats makes no sense for many reasons lol 1. There was literally ZERO fear of a US homeland invasion in 1945 2. US did not use kamikaze tactics in war, even earlier on when they were losing. 3. The largely armed population of the US would not have allowed the government to use their children as human bombs lol
Public schools should be required to listen to first-hand ,uncensored, accounts of war. It’s crazy to me how detached Americans are from the realities of war. We glamorize it.
Remember this Those who seek the glamor of combat Have never been witness to it I don't even know when I heard this but it's been in my mind since being witness to Vietnam as a child. Not all of us here see anything glamorous in war.....but unfortunately are participants of it. We serve our nation hoping to never have to, but understand the possibility of it.
From the historical records, Japan was already starving to death. The U.S. navy knew this and said there was no need to invade. MacArthur overruled the navy because he needed a victory to further his political ambitions after the war. By the time the logistics would have been worked out, Japan would not have surrendered but it would make no difference. Three quarters of the civilians and half the military would have been dead of starvation. The invasion would take three months to gather the necessary troops, equipment and supplies for the invasion. The Japanese had six weeks of civilian rations and two months of military rations. The projections of casualties gave the planners pause however and the decision to invade was kicked upstairs. The decision to drop the bombs was made to prevent the causalities of an invasion and to give the Russians a warning. It also saved the lives of the three quarters of the Japanese people who would have starved to death. My father was one of the first occupation troops to go into Japan. He spoke with many people who thanked him for saving them from starvation. This has been an aspect of the war that has been long forgotten and needs to be remembered. My father was stationed in Hiroshima and his first lieutenants plaque that marked his quarters was cast from copper salvaged from the ruins. It was still giving off about 8 rads of radiation per hour when I measured it with a Geiger counter in 1982. I’m very thankful it was stored in a metal box in our detached garage. When we sold the house, I turned the plaque over to the government for disposal.
@20:10 I have been to the Hiroshima Museum several years ago. Quite an experience, with photos, testimonials, interactive systems and 1000 paper crane exhibit. I also agree with Simon if you can, go see it. There is a physical clock in the museum that counts the known number of nuclear missiles. The clock is designed that if the number ever gets to 0, the clock is designed to self-destruct as it is no longer needed. having completed its goal of having no nuclear weapons in the world.
Still waiting for a video on Okunojima, the then-secret Hiroshima island where they manufactured poison gas in World War Two, which is currently known as Bunny Island as it’s overrun with bunnies.
I'm glad you started this episode with the nod to the fact that a ground invasion would have been immeasurably worse. Other "historians" take the opportunity to flay the US for dropping the bombs without the context of why....
I mostly agree with you, but I gently object to putting historians in quotation marks. I definitely agree that there are some amateur historians out there that do not do the most rigorous, or thoughtful research, that generally have a specific narrative in mind. However, not only Are those amateurs on both sides of the debate, but there are also well respected historians that have done a really good job laying out their own case. Wow you might not agree with their conclusions, at least respect the process of those professional historians. Otherwise we just get into a "rhetorical slap fest", and nobody wins.
@@Royce16727yeah. At this point the debate is a moral one that has no objective answer as both answers are terrible. Basically which form of death do you find more cruel
When I was in the Marines I used to go to a restaurant where an old Japanese guy talked about being one of the people who went into the city after it was hit to look for survivors. He didn’t talk about a lot of things but he was drunk that night and his mother father and sister lived there. And it was the anniversary. After listening to this I wonder if he was one of those kids.
When I was a kid, the Falklands war kicked off. I remember asking her what war was. I'll never forget what she said, "When two old men start a fight they're too scared to fight, they send boys to fight for them." The older I get, the more that sentence makes sense.
Just those few glimpses of the clothes and that trike remind me of some of the exhibits of the Holocaust museum in DC, went there when I was 13, almost 20 years later and I remember the smell of that room full of burned shoes like it was yesterday.
Thank you for this video. As difficult as some parts of it were, I think it's really helpful to understand the aftermath of the bombing which I have to admit I never really considered before. Bravo.
There is a very moving song called "Cranes Over Hiroshima" on UA-cam written and performed by Fred Small. It's the true story of a little girl who survived the bombing of Hiroshima as a baby only to come down with Leukemia when she was 10 or 11. There's a folk belief in Japan that if a sick person folds 1,000 orgami paper cranes they will be cured. The poor little girl managed to fold most of them until she was simply too weak to go on. Her classmates stepped up and folded the rest for her and collected money to erect a monument for their friend. The song made me cry, when I am usually pretty tough. So many victims of war are the most innocent and vulnerable.
Warfare does not care who lives and dies it’s like a beast from hell that feast on misery,death, and destruction it never goes away it only into a slumber.
I was in Japan over the fall and the Peace memorial and museum was one of our stops. I saw the exhibit the video used quotes from and it is truly horrific. One of the most common descriptions of some of the (mostly burn) injuries involved "skin hanging off of people like rags." The exhibit does a great job of displaying events of the bombing as well as surrounding circumstances before and after. It was a very moving experience, to say the least.
I've visited the holacaust museum in when i visited Isreal in the 90's. 3 of us went around on our own. When we met up afterwards we just hugged and cried, no words can explain the horror of war.
Is there any doubt that an emporer willing and actively recruiting such teens to death, who required his soldiers to fight to the end, that such drastic measures were needed to force surrender? How many more americans would have to die to avoid this, is downright barbaric.
I…think my history teacher taught us about these boys. I remember the story about water, and I faintly recall being told those attending them were only children. Thank you Mr. S, I cannot put into words what an impact you had on me. These stories need teaching lest they be repeated.
I have started reading a book called The Doctor Of Hiroshima, it follows Dr Hachiya’s personal account of what happened just before the bomb, the devastating effects that it had on the population after the explosion, and the heartbreaking efforts of the Doctors and Nurses who tried to save as many as they could. The worst part is they didn’t know what they were trying to save the people from, they had never seen radiation poisoning, they had no idea what a nuclear weapon was, and they had no idea that when their patients showed signs of getting better, that the radiation sickness was about to take their patients lives. Hearing the soldiers side to this event really hammers home the devastation that Hiroshima went through, and the mental image that these accounts paint in your mind are truly beyond upsetting.
very true about the Hiroshima peace museum visit.i did that stop back in 2020 along with Nagasaki as well when japan allowed the trains to run again after covid.it wasnt the reason i went to japan but it was worth the stop as i had interest in that time period.
I got to go to Hiroshima in 2012 and it changed the way I see life and humanity. If you ever get the chance to go, I hope that you take it. An unflinching and impactful look at a travesty, it will change you. ❤❤
I had the opportunity to live in Hiroshima for a few months when I was 17 years old, 25 years ago. The museum and memorial very intense places to visit And experiencing their exhibit’s made impressions on me that will last my whole life. I had never heard these stories before, It’s amazing that boys that were just my age when I was there were the first responders to such hellish conditions. every time I hear a new story it sheds light on some aspect about The people of Hiroshimas experiences that I couldn’t even fathom And they all happened in such a beautiful place. All of the evidence of what occurred only survives what was intentionally left in Memorial, in memories, and the DNA of people who Survived.
My biological father has a movie (VHS tape) about the bombing from the Japanese perspective. The movie is very moving. You feel and understand what it was like to be in their shoes. I failed my college history written exam. Because I could not find a good reason to drop the bomb. Even if only having the limited knowledge. Unfortunately, these casualties will be a reminder to the world, why a nuclear bomb should ever be used again.
"...among the very few whose lives were saved by the atomic bombing." Saved a lot more people than that, fact boy. Saved all those who would have died, on both sides, if an invasion of Japan had been undertaken.
I hate to say it but Okinawa was worse. They were primarily school age children. It is sadly under acknowledged what the military did to these kids. I understand fealty to the Emperor and the homeland but when you give a child a grenade and say, "When the gaijin gets close, you pull the pin"... you have lost. You just can't admit it yet. Oh and the girls had them too, armed with stories of what would happen if the gaijin got them (r*pe) they were not to allow themselves to be taken. Oh gaijin means foreigner, non-Japanese. I don't use it flippantly, I know it because of these stories.
My father served as a member of the American occupying force. He rarely spoke of it but he couldn't stand the smell of burning meat. It would trigger memories that he didn't want to remember.
I can't imagine trying to process that. With no concept that an explosion could be that big and that hot, I think my mind would have broken trying to understand it.
I love your videos sm! A topic I’ve been trying to learn more about and would absolutely love to see a video on is the Ghostship warehouse fires in California!
I believe anyone who believes you must be strong and not soft on others should experience handling the dead from a disaster firsthand. That's character building. Now we can talk.
The average age of an American soldier killed in Vietnam was 19. Sending kids to war is nothing shocking. Despite what Hollywood shows you all the wars of the last century where fought by teenagers. Most of the soldiers dieing right now in Ukraine on both sides are teenagers.
@@grandaddyoe1434 Ukraine is having problems finding people younger than 30 to fight, I have heard, for lots of reasons (not just the usual anti gen z stuff). The teens they have fighting are probbly like my uncle in wwII, ran off and lied about his age. (and then got his dad drafted because my grandpa tried to go after him, and got dragged in because he was a skilled carpenter with fighting experience. Thanks, kid!)
@raquellofstedt9713 Ukraine is not actively conscripting 18-25 year olds because they are already struggling demographicly. They economically and demographically cannot throw young men into the war without compromising the future of their country. The average age on the front for Ukraine is 43. They are sending the old to fight instead of the young.
For those interested in the bombing of Hiroshima, I can highly recommend: Hiroshima Diary by Michihiko Hachiya, a doctor in Hiroshima who kept a diary after the bomb.
Maybe Putin should watch the historical horror anime Barefoot Gen as it's a movie about the atomic bombing of Hiroshima from a civilian survivor's point of view and this survivor didn't hold any punches when showing what happened to the people when Little Boy dropped on them.
I could have sworn that I heard/read somewhere that it was the elderly that volunteered to help with cleanup on that, to protect those that had longer to live from the radiation?
During my visit to Hiroshima, and the Peace Memorial Park, I couldn't help but tear up a little. Even as a Canadian I know our scientists played a part in causing such destruction, so at the very least I felt it was my obligation to pay my respects to the site and surrounding city as a whole.
There was no army running amok. The war was already over. The entire country was already broken. Japan was already trying to surrender to Russia. Hell, Japan knew from the get go that it was a war they could never win. But the country had to modernize so that it didn't fall like the rest of Asia did to white colonialism.
Let’s face it, meeting your end as a single use anti tank or anti ship weapon is still a lot better than being incinerated as a civvie during the bombing raid…at least you had the chance of taking someone else with you.
There actually wasn't a great degree of fallout. There was a lot, but it was immediate and relatively contained because of where the bomb exploded. That's why Hiroshima is a populated city and the human race will be long dead before Chernobyl can be repopulated.
Both Hiroshima and Nagasaki were airburst bombings (detonated at altitude, not ground contact) to maximize blast radius since neither were hardened targets. Without the ionizing X-ray fireball making contact with the ground or other materials, the fallout is fairly minimal, with most isotopes having a half-life measured in hours. After a few days, the risk is very low.
The atomic bombs were utterly terrible things, but were necessary... very unfortunately so. Many Japanese officers in the Imperial Navy and Imperial Army after the war admitted that they likely would not have surrendered except for this new devastating weapon. They were indoctrinated into their militarism, and it took such a thing to bring the war to an end. Personally speaking, I approve of its use at that time, but we cannot gloss over its devastating capability. We can do this again. We shouldn't except in the greatest extremity, but we can. But because we know we can, we can resist the urge until no choice remains to us. To quote General Robert E. Lee: "It is well that war is so terrible. We should grow too fond of it." If we must fight a war then we should do so with all our might, strength, and ferocity and end it all the quicker. But let us not become too fond of it.
Many thanks for this great episode 👍Fully 1gree Hiroshima monument visit is a must for any military amateur historian ,But we have similary important of Nazi regime in fully preserved death camp in Oswiecim/ Auschwitz camp, Poland so if Japan is too far for you go to Auschwitz I promise you wont regret it 👍But keep in mind its more then memorial its deth place of many people so pls treat both pls with dignity and respect for dead.
Unpleasant question: If people were indoors and within range, were they also vaporized, as unprotected people were? Or did they die the slow death of radiation poisoning?
From what I understand, it depends on exactly how close and what the building was made of. Solid materials like concrete and steel do a surprisingly good job of blocking radiation. There is also the black rain to consider, and the raw concussion of the blast tossing people, as well as buildings collapsing. But I am pretty sure there are accounts from people who were surprisingly close to the center who managed to crawl out of rubble and survive the entire ordeal.
@ I don’t remember the exact distances, but in the extreme hypocenter, yes. As you move outwards, there were stages of potential survivability. There’s on story of two women climbing basically unharmed out of a collapsed bank into a street of carbonized bodies. I believe one eventually died from radiation but one survived. Simply being out of line of sight did a lot to improve short term survival, provided nothing crushed you and you didn’t get caught in a regular fire.
The flash burns, fires and building collapses caused the majority of short term casualties. You have to be very close for vaporization and acute radiation exposure. Those who consumed the black rain also dealt with radiation sickness.
The argument that "the ground war would have been worse" is of questionable merit. Where were the nukes when 36,000+ Americans died in the Korean War? Where were the nukes when 58,000+ Americans died in Vietnam? Surely most, if not all, of those Americans wouldn't have died if we led with atomic and nuclear weapons. But, it would seem, these two bombs soured most of us on using them for anything other than very expensive sabers to rattle.
It isn't really questionable. 2 million military and 5 million civilian casualties were estimated for a ground invasion. We are still pulling purple heart medals from the batch made in anticipation of the invasion of Japan. Nukes were considered in Korea but there was a concern of it drawing the Soviets into direct action if used. In both cases of Korea and Vietnam we were still creating a massively one-sided casualty outcome just using conventional weapons. Neither were at the scale of a naval invasion of a hardened enemy homeland that had years of preparation and defensive construction.
Anyone else hear the guy saying, "Maybe we should stop fighting? This is hopeless." and find it blows the idea that "they were ready to surrender, we didn't have to drop the bomb on them" right out of the water? They were so ready to quit that it took them another bomb on another city and another week after that for them to surrender.
No, it really doesn't. There were no cell phones and no Twitter. There was no way to the these kids to have known that Japan had been trying for several weeks to surrender to Russia, because they didn't need to know. The war was over. The US knew it. Japan knew it. It just took time to get the memo. Hiroshima was bombed on the 6th. Nagasaki was bombed on the 9th. That's a difference of 3 days, and it took far, far longer to get Hiroshima under control. So no, a couple of teens who hadn't even gotten to work yet wouldn't have been able to walk up to the Emperor and tell him to surrender. But they didn't need to, because it was already happening. Read a book.
Its Japan, of course they need a bunch of teens to face of a possible nuclear catastrophy, who knows what kind of kaiju the bombings could have spawned
Recently saw an instagram post, it was a video of a firework display, something about a world record. The amount of disgusting things I saw being said in that comment section has stuck with me for a while now. This is a terrible thing, nuclear weapons should have never been made. I will make an effort to visit the memorial, should I ever visit Japan.
This video should be played to everyone in a nuclear military power every day when they do their water parade. This is a terrible eye opener to the truth of atomic warfare.
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Thank you George for writing the script. George is one of my favorites of the authors for Simon’s channels and pod casts. He’s research and dedication to primary source material, and raw empathy is so prevalent in all his work.
I enjoy many of Simon's writers, but theres 2 that have stood out in quality to me personally, George for his utter in depth research he goes to (there are other's who do, dont get me wrong), and Danny (because Danny)
Also Jen's editing this episode was top notch, Music was spot on, and the dimming in music for the respectful moments, was great, thankyou both... and Simon too
I am glad this topic was brought to light because I never even knew this story.
@@itsblitz4437 same here
I haven't been to the Hiroshima one yet, but I got walked through the Nagasaki one by a survivor and her grandson. She told me stories and showed me people she knew in the pictures. I cried like a baby. She was so kind and gracious. Her grandson translated for us. She said she was glad I was there because people need to know. To never forget and to never let it happen again. I still tear up every time I go through it with whichever family member comes to visit. I make them all go once.
"one" what? a memorial site?
@themischief420 yes. Sorry for the confusion. The bomb/war memorials.
A military unit made up of children; created to perform suicide missions; responding to the world's first atomic bombing… It's horrific turtles all the way down…
It could easily be an HBO mini series as well.
Certainly of death. Small chance of success. What are we waiting for?
@ I know the viewing public is pretty desensitized, but do you think this kind of show would get actual numbers? Lol
At that pont I think it would be teenage mutant possibly ninja turtles no?
I don't recall how old I was when I first learned about Hiroshima.
One of the pictures I still remember was of a room of survivors standing in somewhat odd poses with flowers tattooed on their skin. They had been at just the right distance to have survived, but the heat had burned the patterns of their clothing onto the skin. They were burned all over, and could only stand perfectly still to avoid the worse pain of moving their burned bodies.
I hate war.
same, currently both sides of my extended family are effected by the Ukraine Russian war, and some i haven't seen or heard from since it started.
but on the Hiroshima the first time i learned of it, it was the shadow's of the victims who didn't even have bodies or even ashes stuck in the moment they passed away in, my skin crawls and i can still see the shadow's when i close my eye's and think about it. war is awful but the weapons people invent for it are horrifying.
i would like to see a world were wars dont exist irl instead just settle it in video games let the leaders just have a pvp 1 on 1 battle online, i doubt that will ever happen but that is what i wish people would do some day.
I remember, because I remember the teacher giving the lesson, I was 12, it was never mentioned before. He showed us the images of the shadows that had once been people, he told us the horrors of the radiation and the absolute hell on earth it created without sugarcoating and absolutely without justifying it. I’m forever grateful for that teacher for emphasising reality and understanding we were capable of learning difficult lessons even though we were young, absolutely incredible man. Absolute horrific incident.
As you say, I hate war.
This was one of the toughest videos from Simon I’ve ever watched. As a former Army Special Forces Officer, war is hell, no matter the justification.
On one of my deployments, we reacted to an IED that hit civilian vehicles. I’ll never forget an injured child calling for their dead parents.
they are obviously crying from shock and maybe also pain, but not knowing if they understand immediately their parents are just GONE
that is the most fucked up part atleast for me, and i have only heard and read stories
im not even from your country but thank you for your service man
War is hell but an enemy is an enemy
@@BonShula we can suppose that your stupid remark is based on the fact that you never went to war and have to kill someone. Either it or you are just a person who had lost your humanity
@@BonShula yup, agreed; the only thing that’s bothered me is civilians who get caught in the crossfire, like the situation I mentioned above. Not that we did anything wrong; it’s just tragic to see (and hear).
War doesn't determine who is right, only who is left.
Watching this video I remember back to 2017 when there was talk about possible nuclear conflict between the US and North Korea. There were talking head pundits actually trying to justify the saber rattling claiming a nuclear attack is not as bad as they make it out in the movies. No matter how horrific it was then, it would be incomprehensible today with modern Hydrogen bombs that dwarf the atomic bombs used in Japan and can strike multiple targets at once. Humanity must endeavor to make sure the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the last humans to ever experience this Hell on Earth.
Threads, the 1984 British TV drama, probably shows the best impression of a nuclear attack and its aftermath. Terminator 2, Judgement Day also has a nuclear attack scene that is also scarily realistic.
It must be unimaginable to live a life with the memories of what was seen by these men… as young boys.
4:50 same with the voluntary fire department in rural areas. We all felt obligated to join to protect our community. And they have a kids program in germany. There you only do training or support.
At the floodings the kids helped fill the sand bags for example
The Hiroshima Peace Museum is one of the most harrowing places you will ever see, and if you can you should. Entry is free, and you can rent an audio tour to tell you about the exhibits, since most people will not be able to read the Japanese text. You simply enter the number next to each exhibit and it will tell you what it is. There’s also the ‘atom bomb dome’ in the park; a building that was nearly directly under the blast and is still standing, albeit with a little intervention to shore it up. And of course, the Children’s Peace Monument, with the statue of Sadako, surrounded by booths of thousands of paper cranes.
Military trauma nurse here.
The idea of not giving water to burns victims is completely flawed. They desperately need fluid.
Nothing says "We are completely and utterly fucked" like having to put literal children into the armed forces. That said, at least most of the members of the unit are still alive.
This also applies to child soldiers in the Congo.
The Hitler Youth, boys as young as in their early teens, were also deployed in the final days of the fall of the Reich. They were serving in the German civil defense and in the defensive militia called the Volkssturm.
They need to rename this channel, “Into the depression.” They can throw in the tagline “If you had pleasant thoughts about humanity, just watch this.”
Yep, that's how a lot of history is. Humans are capable of horrific things. Let us hope there are never any more victims of such weapons.
Kamikaze Kids sounds like a title for a TV series with *explosive* potential.
Simon, you brought an old man to tears.
I'm not an old man but an adult for many yrs now. This brought me to some tears as well. Heavy this one.
People on the internet: “Japan was going to surrender anyways!”
Japan: *training child kamikazes* 👀
And they still had guerilla fighters in other countries who refused to believe it or just refused to quit fighting, doesn't make it a necessary option, it was more for the future wars than it was for that one, such foolish creatures we are, we've experienced the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again and again and again and we still think that we can do ONE last MASSIVE terror to mold the morrow-and it never works in anyones favor. It only incites the creative psychopaths that rule over us all in their varying ways-I'm also not a fan of such weak offensives, not gonna lie, before I even really understood the situation I felt sick that this nation I was born in would be too afraid to actually fight the war they're in and instead would make for us all, a monster-for fear of losing men in a war, that is what war is, it's losing your warriors not fire-bombing//decimating innocents(and yeah tho, the kamikaze shit is wild lololololol, I feel ya, sorry I realize I probably am coming off as preachy/aggro, I am blazed fam, and don't mean to nor intend to, I just realized I have that fucking weird feeling of trying to climb up some soap box LMFAO lolololololol i hate it all I HATE ALL OF IT lmfao! Much love sorry I'm just a wonky one :D )
The US did the exact same thing, and had there been any threat of a landed invasion, would have done far worse.
@@ScooterinAB cite your sources
@@ScooterinAB thats makes no sense for many reasons lol
1. There was literally ZERO fear of a US homeland invasion in 1945
2. US did not use kamikaze tactics in war, even earlier on when they were losing.
3. The largely armed population of the US would not have allowed the government to use their children as human bombs lol
@@somehaloguy9372 I don't cite sources online because people just ignore it and keep saying the same stupid bullshit.
Public schools should be required to listen to first-hand ,uncensored, accounts of war. It’s crazy to me how detached Americans are from the realities of war. We glamorize it.
Remember this
Those who seek the glamor of combat
Have never been witness to it
I don't even know when I heard this but it's been in my mind since being witness to Vietnam as a child.
Not all of us here see anything glamorous in war.....but unfortunately are participants of it.
We serve our nation hoping to never have to, but understand the possibility of it.
Veteran here. I couldn’t agree more.
That’s mostly the right wing bud, there are videos of soldiers calling out Bush for sending them and their friends to die in a unjust war of attrition
Hahaha then who would write history/ America is war north or south
Yes very deliberately. How else will naive young people sign up and give their lives for GOV antics
From the historical records, Japan was already starving to death. The U.S. navy knew this and said there was no need to invade. MacArthur overruled the navy because he needed a victory to further his political ambitions after the war. By the time the logistics would have been worked out, Japan would not have surrendered but it would make no difference. Three quarters of the civilians and half the military would have been dead of starvation. The invasion would take three months to gather the necessary troops, equipment and supplies for the invasion. The Japanese had six weeks of civilian rations and two months of military rations. The projections of casualties gave the planners pause however and the decision to invade was kicked upstairs. The decision to drop the bombs was made to prevent the causalities of an invasion and to give the Russians a warning. It also saved the lives of the three quarters of the Japanese people who would have starved to death. My father was one of the first occupation troops to go into Japan. He spoke with many people who thanked him for saving them from starvation. This has been an aspect of the war that has been long forgotten and needs to be remembered. My father was stationed in Hiroshima and his first lieutenants plaque that marked his quarters was cast from copper salvaged from the ruins. It was still giving off about 8 rads of radiation per hour when I measured it with a Geiger counter in 1982. I’m very thankful it was stored in a metal box in our detached garage. When we sold the house, I turned the plaque over to the government for disposal.
@20:10 I have been to the Hiroshima Museum several years ago. Quite an experience, with photos, testimonials, interactive systems and 1000 paper crane exhibit. I also agree with Simon if you can, go see it. There is a physical clock in the museum that counts the known number of nuclear missiles. The clock is designed that if the number ever gets to 0, the clock is designed to self-destruct as it is no longer needed. having completed its goal of having no nuclear weapons in the world.
DO YOU MEAN THE CLOCK WILL EXPLODE?
@Genesh12 no, apparently it will fall apart with gears falling off.
No matter what your view is on wether or not the atomic bombs had to be dropped these stories have to bring a tear to your eye 😔
I have a 4 year old daughter and I teach daycare.
The little boy near the boat broke me.
Still waiting for a video on Okunojima, the then-secret Hiroshima island where they manufactured poison gas in World War Two, which is currently known as Bunny Island as it’s overrun with bunnies.
I'm glad you started this episode with the nod to the fact that a ground invasion would have been immeasurably worse. Other "historians" take the opportunity to flay the US for dropping the bombs without the context of why....
I mostly agree with you, but I gently object to putting historians in quotation marks. I definitely agree that there are some amateur historians out there that do not do the most rigorous, or thoughtful research, that generally have a specific narrative in mind. However, not only Are those amateurs on both sides of the debate, but there are also well respected historians that have done a really good job laying out their own case. Wow you might not agree with their conclusions, at least respect the process of those professional historians. Otherwise we just get into a "rhetorical slap fest", and nobody wins.
@@Royce16727Blood hungry like him never respect anyone.
@@Royce16727yeah. At this point the debate is a moral one that has no objective answer as both answers are terrible.
Basically which form of death do you find more cruel
🤮 Beyond disgusting.🤮🤮
Worse for the Americans, you mean
When I was in the Marines I used to go to a restaurant where an old Japanese guy talked about being one of the people who went into the city after it was hit to look for survivors. He didn’t talk about a lot of things but he was drunk that night and his mother father and sister lived there. And it was the anniversary.
After listening to this I wonder if he was one of those kids.
When I was a kid, the Falklands war kicked off.
I remember asking her what war was. I'll never forget what she said, "When two old men start a fight they're too scared to fight, they send boys to fight for them."
The older I get, the more that sentence makes sense.
Just those few glimpses of the clothes and that trike remind me of some of the exhibits of the Holocaust museum in DC, went there when I was 13, almost 20 years later and I remember the smell of that room full of burned shoes like it was yesterday.
That was harrowing, but important to watch.
Thank you for this video. As difficult as some parts of it were, I think it's really helpful to understand the aftermath of the bombing which I have to admit I never really considered before. Bravo.
There is a very moving song called "Cranes Over Hiroshima" on UA-cam written and performed by Fred Small. It's the true story of a little girl who survived the bombing of Hiroshima as a baby only to come down with Leukemia when she was 10 or 11. There's a folk belief in Japan that if a sick person folds 1,000 orgami paper cranes they will be cured. The poor little girl managed to fold most of them until she was simply too weak to go on. Her classmates stepped up and folded the rest for her and collected money to erect a monument for their friend.
The song made me cry, when I am usually pretty tough. So many victims of war are the most innocent and vulnerable.
It hurts to listen to how horrible humans can be with each other.
17:20 brought me to tears 😢
You should do a video about villages Kľak, Grúň and Očová in Slovakia.
Warfare does not care who lives and dies it’s like a beast from hell that feast on misery,death, and destruction it never goes away it only into a slumber.
I was in Japan over the fall and the Peace memorial and museum was one of our stops. I saw the exhibit the video used quotes from and it is truly horrific. One of the most common descriptions of some of the (mostly burn) injuries involved "skin hanging off of people like rags." The exhibit does a great job of displaying events of the bombing as well as surrounding circumstances before and after. It was a very moving experience, to say the least.
"...some kind of enormous explosion..." Stoic exemplar.
I've visited the holacaust museum in when i visited Isreal in the 90's. 3 of us went around on our own. When we met up afterwards we just hugged and cried, no words can explain the horror of war.
Is there any doubt that an emporer willing and actively recruiting such teens to death, who required his soldiers to fight to the end, that such drastic measures were needed to force surrender? How many more americans would have to die to avoid this, is downright barbaric.
I…think my history teacher taught us about these boys. I remember the story about water, and I faintly recall being told those attending them were only children. Thank you Mr. S, I cannot put into words what an impact you had on me. These stories need teaching lest they be repeated.
Well I love history and I'm not a peticularly emotional person but darn it that made me cry. War is hell....
I have started reading a book called The Doctor Of Hiroshima, it follows Dr Hachiya’s personal account of what happened just before the bomb, the devastating effects that it had on the population after the explosion, and the heartbreaking efforts of the Doctors and Nurses who tried to save as many as they could.
The worst part is they didn’t know what they were trying to save the people from, they had never seen radiation poisoning, they had no idea what a nuclear weapon was, and they had no idea that when their patients showed signs of getting better, that the radiation sickness was about to take their patients lives.
Hearing the soldiers side to this event really hammers home the devastation that Hiroshima went through, and the mental image that these accounts paint in your mind are truly beyond upsetting.
very true about the Hiroshima peace museum visit.i did that stop back in 2020 along with Nagasaki as well when japan allowed the trains to run again after covid.it wasnt the reason i went to japan but it was worth the stop as i had interest in that time period.
That was a hard watch.
I got to go to Hiroshima in 2012 and it changed the way I see life and humanity. If you ever get the chance to go, I hope that you take it. An unflinching and impactful look at a travesty, it will change you. ❤❤
My grandfather was in the US Navy. He took photos when they landed in Hiroshima he was a medic.
I had the opportunity to live in Hiroshima for a few months when I was 17 years old, 25 years ago. The museum and memorial very intense places to visit And experiencing their exhibit’s made impressions on me that will last my whole life. I had never heard these stories before, It’s amazing that boys that were just my age when I was there were the first responders to such hellish conditions. every time I hear a new story it sheds light on some aspect about The people of Hiroshimas experiences that I couldn’t even fathom And they all happened in such a beautiful place. All of the evidence of what occurred only survives what was intentionally left in Memorial, in memories, and the DNA of people who Survived.
Bang on, Simon!
Perhaps you could do an episode on “Memoirs of a Kamikaze” by Kazuo Odachi.
That's the definition of childhood trauma and PTSD I hope they find peace after life
Thank you, Simon.
I went to Hiroshima two summers ago and it was haunting. I can only imagine what it was like to live through that. Never again.
My biological father has a movie (VHS tape) about the bombing from the Japanese perspective.
The movie is very moving. You feel and understand what it was like to be in their shoes.
I failed my college history written exam. Because I could not find a good reason to drop the bomb. Even if only having the limited knowledge.
Unfortunately, these casualties will be a reminder to the world, why a nuclear bomb should ever be used again.
Love you, Simon
FOR THE EMPEROR!!!!
"...among the very few whose lives were saved by the atomic bombing."
Saved a lot more people than that, fact boy. Saved all those who would have died, on both sides, if an invasion of Japan had been undertaken.
I hate to say it but Okinawa was worse.
They were primarily school age children. It is sadly under acknowledged what the military did to these kids. I understand fealty to the Emperor and the homeland but when you give a child a grenade and say, "When the gaijin gets close, you pull the pin"... you have lost. You just can't admit it yet. Oh and the girls had them too, armed with stories of what would happen if the gaijin got them (r*pe) they were not to allow themselves to be taken.
Oh gaijin means foreigner, non-Japanese. I don't use it flippantly, I know it because of these stories.
My father served as a member of the American occupying force. He rarely spoke of it but he couldn't stand the smell of burning meat. It would trigger memories that he didn't want to remember.
A Second Sun?? God
Pink Floyd has the song. Two suns in the sunset
About this exact thing
I can't imagine trying to process that. With no concept that an explosion could be that big and that hot, I think my mind would have broken trying to understand it.
One of the survivors interviewed simply said "the sun came to earth. How could that happen"?
I love your videos sm!
A topic I’ve been trying to learn more about and would absolutely love to see a video on is the Ghostship warehouse fires in California!
I believe anyone who believes you must be strong and not soft on others should experience handling the dead from a disaster firsthand.
That's character building. Now we can talk.
The average age of an American soldier killed in Vietnam was 19.
Sending kids to war is nothing shocking. Despite what Hollywood shows you all the wars of the last century where fought by teenagers. Most of the soldiers dieing right now in Ukraine on both sides are teenagers.
Ukraine has allegedly not conscripted the 18-25 age group and refuses to do so. Who comprise the teenagers to whom you refer?
russians are sending their conscripts to invade Ukraine.
@@grandaddyoe1434 Ukraine is having problems finding people younger than 30 to fight, I have heard, for lots of reasons (not just the usual anti gen z stuff). The teens they have fighting are probbly like my uncle in wwII, ran off and lied about his age. (and then got his dad drafted because my grandpa tried to go after him, and got dragged in because he was a skilled carpenter with fighting experience. Thanks, kid!)
@raquellofstedt9713 Ukraine is not actively conscripting 18-25 year olds because they are already struggling demographicly. They economically and demographically cannot throw young men into the war without compromising the future of their country.
The average age on the front for Ukraine is 43. They are sending the old to fight instead of the young.
EVERY ELECTED & APPOINTED PUBLIC SERVANT SHOULD BE MADE TO WATCH THIS, AND PASS A COMPREHENSION TEST, ANNUALLY.
For those interested in the bombing of Hiroshima, I can highly recommend: Hiroshima Diary by Michihiko Hachiya, a doctor in Hiroshima who kept a diary after the bomb.
well i saw graveyard of fireflies so i guess i didnt wonder past that.
Watch Barefoot Gen, based on a manga by a man who was a child when the bombing happened. It's harrowing.
@@nightmarefanatic1819 ill have to check that out thanks!
That's based on the firebombings of Kobe
And Mad Man Putin, wants to use these weapons............ As Humans, we will never Learn.
clown
Maybe Putin should watch the historical horror anime Barefoot Gen as it's a movie about the atomic bombing of Hiroshima from a civilian survivor's point of view and this survivor didn't hold any punches when showing what happened to the people when Little Boy dropped on them.
We forget as those who remember pass on and thir lives become stories, abstract history.
This was brutal damn, no one should have to suffer like that and loss
I could have sworn that I heard/read somewhere that it was the elderly that volunteered to help with cleanup on that, to protect those that had longer to live from the radiation?
That was in Fukushima
@@andrzej2501 okay, as long as I wasn't completely pulling that out of my ass.
During my visit to Hiroshima, and the Peace Memorial Park, I couldn't help but tear up a little. Even as a Canadian I know our scientists played a part in causing such destruction, so at the very least I felt it was my obligation to pay my respects to the site and surrounding city as a whole.
Across all of Simons shows. I could not finish this video. It’s too much to bare.
That's kinda sad
Too much to *bear*
Bro how did I time that?
Thats what she said
Creating this level of horror and searing it onto the minds of survivors makes it more difficult to raise an army to run amuck again.
There was no army running amok. The war was already over. The entire country was already broken. Japan was already trying to surrender to Russia. Hell, Japan knew from the get go that it was a war they could never win. But the country had to modernize so that it didn't fall like the rest of Asia did to white colonialism.
Let’s face it, meeting your end as a single use anti tank or anti ship weapon is still a lot better than being incinerated as a civvie during the bombing raid…at least you had the chance of taking someone else with you.
most of these kamikaze kids survived into old age after prolonged severe radiation exposure due to fallout?
There actually wasn't a great degree of fallout. There was a lot, but it was immediate and relatively contained because of where the bomb exploded. That's why Hiroshima is a populated city and the human race will be long dead before Chernobyl can be repopulated.
Both Hiroshima and Nagasaki were airburst bombings (detonated at altitude, not ground contact) to maximize blast radius since neither were hardened targets. Without the ionizing X-ray fireball making contact with the ground or other materials, the fallout is fairly minimal, with most isotopes having a half-life measured in hours. After a few days, the risk is very low.
The atomic bombs were utterly terrible things, but were necessary... very unfortunately so. Many Japanese officers in the Imperial Navy and Imperial Army after the war admitted that they likely would not have surrendered except for this new devastating weapon. They were indoctrinated into their militarism, and it took such a thing to bring the war to an end. Personally speaking, I approve of its use at that time, but we cannot gloss over its devastating capability. We can do this again. We shouldn't except in the greatest extremity, but we can. But because we know we can, we can resist the urge until no choice remains to us.
To quote General Robert E. Lee: "It is well that war is so terrible. We should grow too fond of it." If we must fight a war then we should do so with all our might, strength, and ferocity and end it all the quicker. But let us not become too fond of it.
Its sad but look at every thing that country did during the war. In the islands. In china. Etc.
Never forget Japan's war crimes even though they seem to think they dont exist
Many thanks for this great episode 👍Fully 1gree Hiroshima monument visit is a must for any military amateur historian ,But we have similary important of Nazi regime in fully preserved death camp in Oswiecim/ Auschwitz camp, Poland so if Japan is too far for you go to Auschwitz I promise you wont regret it 👍But keep in mind its more then memorial its deth place of many people so pls treat both pls with dignity and respect for dead.
I’ve been to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. If you visit, you will be changed.
Unpleasant question: If people were indoors and within range, were they also vaporized, as unprotected people were? Or did they die the slow death of radiation poisoning?
From what I understand, it depends on exactly how close and what the building was made of. Solid materials like concrete and steel do a surprisingly good job of blocking radiation. There is also the black rain to consider, and the raw concussion of the blast tossing people, as well as buildings collapsing. But I am pretty sure there are accounts from people who were surprisingly close to the center who managed to crawl out of rubble and survive the entire ordeal.
@@Renastarsong surely they were burnt though by the immense heat right?
@ I don’t remember the exact distances, but in the extreme hypocenter, yes. As you move outwards, there were stages of potential survivability. There’s on story of two women climbing basically unharmed out of a collapsed bank into a street of carbonized bodies. I believe one eventually died from radiation but one survived. Simply being out of line of sight did a lot to improve short term survival, provided nothing crushed you and you didn’t get caught in a regular fire.
They likely died under collapsed buildings if they were luck, or were immolated if they weren't.
The flash burns, fires and building collapses caused the majority of short term casualties. You have to be very close for vaporization and acute radiation exposure. Those who consumed the black rain also dealt with radiation sickness.
The argument that "the ground war would have been worse" is of questionable merit.
Where were the nukes when 36,000+ Americans died in the Korean War?
Where were the nukes when 58,000+ Americans died in Vietnam?
Surely most, if not all, of those Americans wouldn't have died if we led with atomic and nuclear weapons. But, it would seem, these two bombs soured most of us on using them for anything other than very expensive sabers to rattle.
It isn't really questionable. 2 million military and 5 million civilian casualties were estimated for a ground invasion. We are still pulling purple heart medals from the batch made in anticipation of the invasion of Japan.
Nukes were considered in Korea but there was a concern of it drawing the Soviets into direct action if used.
In both cases of Korea and Vietnam we were still creating a massively one-sided casualty outcome just using conventional weapons. Neither were at the scale of a naval invasion of a hardened enemy homeland that had years of preparation and defensive construction.
Ok, I cried watching this😔
Really sad event in our history
Are there any museums in Japan honoring the victims of Unit 731?...
Great episode, i am pretty sure that Hiratsuka is pronounced like hiratska, that is hiw they pronouce the town my fiancee lives in
Anyone else hear the guy saying, "Maybe we should stop fighting? This is hopeless." and find it blows the idea that "they were ready to surrender, we didn't have to drop the bomb on them" right out of the water?
They were so ready to quit that it took them another bomb on another city and another week after that for them to surrender.
No, it really doesn't. There were no cell phones and no Twitter. There was no way to the these kids to have known that Japan had been trying for several weeks to surrender to Russia, because they didn't need to know. The war was over. The US knew it. Japan knew it. It just took time to get the memo. Hiroshima was bombed on the 6th. Nagasaki was bombed on the 9th. That's a difference of 3 days, and it took far, far longer to get Hiroshima under control. So no, a couple of teens who hadn't even gotten to work yet wouldn't have been able to walk up to the Emperor and tell him to surrender. But they didn't need to, because it was already happening. Read a book.
You reap what you sow.
#FreeSimon
Desperation Gultch !
I pray this world never sees another war like this again, I'm not sure we'd survive it
Dibs on the title of this video for a band name
If you're going to be like Johnny Somali and be a nuisance don't go to that museum please
holy shit. im speechless
Its Japan, of course they need a bunch of teens to face of a possible nuclear catastrophy, who knows what kind of kaiju the bombings could have spawned
Recently saw an instagram post, it was a video of a firework display, something about a world record. The amount of disgusting things I saw being said in that comment section has stuck with me for a while now. This is a terrible thing, nuclear weapons should have never been made. I will make an effort to visit the memorial, should I ever visit Japan.
A sound A sound to be heard by humans once again twice and more this is are nature and so good at it we've developed
It should be considered a war crime to sacrifice children on the battlefield
The US did the same.
Imperial Japan commited like dozens of war crimes I don't think it would have made a difference
@@ScooterinABwhen?
@@exnihiloadnihilum5094 Guess.
Very interesting
Last time I was this early simons signature move was bambada tsh
How many miles is a kilometer, what is 7 kilometers in miles! You usually do it for me Simon 😢
A kilometre is slightly less than two thirds of a mile, you can use that as a rough guide.
A Km is around 6/10 of a mile. A 100km is a 60 miles.
The thumbnail made me believe this was about Warhammer 40k but now I'm sad...
I know you don't like subjects like this Simon so you are indeed putting in work but pls, let me out of the basement m8 ❤
This video should be played to everyone in a nuclear military power every day when they do their water parade. This is a terrible eye opener to the truth of atomic warfare.