Four years ago today, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell played a major role in persuading a gullible, stupefied and craven American news media and public - but not a cynical world - to support the Bush administration's illegal, immoral invasion of Iraq. He did so by presenting a panoply of lies, false statements and exaggerations about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and ties to al Qaeda terrorists.

Four years later, as both United States and Israel prepare their populations for an illegal, immoral preventive war against Iran -- allegedly to disrupt, if not destroy, the secret nuclear weapons program that both insist (without evidence) is well under way there -- Americans might do well to avoid being duped again. Thus, they might contemplate not only the allegations against Iran, but also the sins of the United States and Israel when it comes to developing, using and brandishing their own nuclear weapons.

The sins of the United States are quite well known. Acting on the advice of Albert Einstein, who feared that Nazi Germany might obtain nuclear weapons, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt authorized a crash program, the Manhattan Project, to develop the bombs that would be dropped at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

In Five Days in August, Michael D. Gordin asserts: "Military men in particular considered the decision to drop the bomb as a given from the moment development shaded into a deliverable weapon" [p. 11] Moreover, "By the time the Americans began to consider the potential utility of the atomic bomb, they had already for years experienced increasing brutality, bloodshed, mayhem, and dehumanization, and experienced them routinely." [pp. 7-8] Thus, the United States dropped the bombs on Japan as if they were just tactical weapons, but as part of a "'shock strategy' to compel the Japanese government to accept surrender." [p. 13].

Truman, however, soon believed otherwise. As Tsuyoshi Hasegawa writes in his meticulously researched book, Racing the Enemy: Stalin, Truman, and the Surrender of Japan, "Truman had read the Magic Diplomatic Summary reporting that the atomic bomb on Hiroshima had killed 100,000 people." "He didn't like the idea of killing� 'all these kids,'" Admiral William Leahy wrote in his diary. [p 202]

Thus, on August 10, 1945 - a day after Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki and the very day that the Japanese government sent a letter to the Swiss legation to the United States government protesting the use of atomic bombs as a crime against humanity [ibid. p. 299] - "Truman announced that he had given an order to stop further atomic bombing without his authorization." [Ibid, p. 202]

In addition to Truman, the bomb quickly awed war-weary Americans, thanks, in part, to the propaganda about the technological marvel and ultimate weapon that "journalist" William Leonard Laurence aimed at both Japanese and American audiences. Not only did Americans naturally, but mistakenly, assume that the bomb was responsible for Japan's abrupt surrender, they also experienced "visions and fears of total annihilation [which] emerged almost immediately upon Japanese surrender." [Gordin, p. 131]

Actually, it was the Soviet Union's entry into the war against Japan, not the two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki alone, that prompted Japan's surrender. According to Professor Hasegawa: "Without the Soviet entry into the war, the Japanese would have continued to fight until numerous atomic bombs, a successful allied invasion of the home islands, or continued aerial bombardments, combined with a naval blockade, rendered them incapable of doing so." [Hasegawa, p.298]

According to Hasegawa, "Americans still cling to the myth that the atomic bombs�provided the knockout punch to the Japanese government�The myth serves to justify Truman's decision and ease the collective American conscience." [Ibid, pp. 298-99] "Until his death, Truman continually came back to this question and repeatedly justified his decision, inventing a fiction that he himself later came to believe." [Ibid, p. 299]. Hasegawa might have added that America's collective conscious also was eased by a widespread faith that such an indisputable demonstration of America's technological prowess once again indicated that God had assigned the U.S. an "exceptional" role in His plans for mankind.

Thus, Americans deluded themselves twice. First, about their own guilt. Second, about the efficacy of the bomb. Which explains why, "a year after the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, U.S. strategy proposed dropping fifty atomic bombs on twenty separate Soviet cities." [Gordin, p. 130] Some (sick) Americans even advocated a preemptive nuclear strike on the Soviet Union, lest it break America's nuclear monopoly.

Additionally, as Joseph Gerson has observed: "Unlike any other nation, on more than thirty occasions since the A-bombing of Nagasaki every U.S. president has prepared or threatened to initiate first strike nuclear attacks during crises�Since 1950, the U.S. has threatened North Korea with nuclear attack at least eight times. Nearly a dozen such threats have been made during Middle East wars and crises. Since the end of the Cold War, Iraq, Iran, North Korea and Libya have been threatened with U.S. nuclear attacks. And, the 2002�Bush-Cheney Nuclear Posture Review named seven nations as primary U.S. nuclear targets: Iraq, Iran, North Korea, China, Russia, Libya and Syria." [Gerson, "Preventing Nuclear War in Korea," Znet Oct. 18, 2006]

Making matters worse, on March 15, 2005, the Department of Defense released a policy paper, "'Doctrine for Joint Nuclear Operations,'�which made permissible the employment of nuclear weapons by the United States preemptively, in non-nuclear environments, either to defeat overwhelming conventional opposition, or simply to assure U.S. victory." [Ritter, Target Iran, p. 179]

How such a U.S. willingness to use the bomb would discourage other countries from pursuing their own nuclear deterrent is difficult to imagine -- especially after the Bush administration's whimsical invasion of "brittle," nuke-less Iraq.

Moreover, the sole country to ever to use the bomb also continues to brandish it and upgrade it in bad faith and in violation of Article VI of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT). Article VI stipulates: "Each of the Parties to the Treaty undertakes to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament, and on a Treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control."

Yet, now, the hypocritical and reckless Bush administration is accusing Iran of deceit and lies regarding its nuclear program and has gone so far as to demand that Iran - a signatory to the NPT -- even forego rights legally available to it under the NPT. The Bush administration is being prodded by Israel, another hypocritical and rogue nuclear power that refuses to be bound by the NPT

According to Scott Ritter, writing in his recent book, Target Iran, "the conflict currently underway between the United States and Iran is, first and foremost, a conflict born in Israel. It is based upon an Israeli contention that Iran poses a threat to Israel, and defined by Israeli assertions that Iran possesses a nuclear weapons program. None of this has been shown to be true, and indeed much of the allegations made by Israel against Iran have been clearly demonstrated as being false." [p. 208]

Yet, given Israel's own dishonorable record of deceit and lies attending the building of its own bomb, everyone should readily understand why Israel's rulers today remain suspicious about Iran's nuclear program. After all, how could any Israeli possibly believe that Iran's leaders today are less dishonorable than their own leaders were?

It's that very pattern of deceit and lies behind Israel's bomb, which will be examined in Part Two of this article.

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Comments :
Isreal has urgent need of it's atomic weapons, after all, it is under constant threat from kids throwing rocks at their helpless tanks.
How could they protect their bulldozers that are knocking down homes in occupied territory to make way for expansion of their own empire.
By: oldephart on February 05, 2007 at 05:59pm
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Let me see - US is bad, Israel is worse... How come I am not surprised...
By: ProudNeoCon on February 05, 2007 at 06:34pm
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I am still baffled about why the biggest figures from both sides of the aisle trip over each other trying to be the key speaker at AIPAC functions when two of the top AIPAC officials will soon go on trial for espionage
agaisnt the US in an effort to try to send illegally obtained classified information about the US Intel on Iran back to Israel so that bad information that matches our fears could be stove piped to our government (just like they did in the Iraq buildup) that would increase the likelyhood of a war (just as wrongheaded and unjustified as the Iraq war) against Iran.

The man responsible for passing classified info to these two ( an offical from Douglas Feiths office in the pentagon) is already doing 12 years in federal prison for his crimes.

Where is the accountability? Where is the posture of avoiding even the appearance of corruption?


If we begin to pull US influence out of the hands of the Ultra right wing religious and ultranationalist fanatics in Israel and encourage and assist the truely moderate and reform minded people there ( and certainly here in the US as well), we will begin to see a movement towards a peacfully obtained 2 state solution and, as the ISG, Jimmy Carter, Tony Blair, Dennis Kucinich, Chuck Hagel, and most nations in the world believe, the begining of the end of the war on terror.

When the Palestinians are finally freed from the tryanny of the settlers and the occupation, you will see groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, Al qaeda and leaders such as Amadinejad start to wane dramatically in their inluence because the Israeli Palestinian conflict is the oxygen they have relied on to breath and grow for decades.

A key factor in acheiving the reshufflng of power in Israel is cutting AIPAC out of the political process here in the US altogether.

J
By: justtellthetruth on February 05, 2007 at 07:17pm
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Interesting. Of course, one can read today all sorts of news all over the planet, in newspapers, blogs, etc. and most of it comes in a number of languages, including English.

So, that being the case, we can read Arab websites, European websites, English websites, whatever websites, and like people all over the globe, this vastly expanded source of information, none of which we can check personally, will give us at least an idea of what is being said in the world.

Israel has the bomb? Yes, it was a jew who invented it, so why would a jewish nation not have it. Is Israel going to drop it on anyone? NOT likely. There is just one scenario that would happen, namely definite proof of an enemy coming to nuke them first.

I have read that Ahmadinejad said that Israel should be wiped off the map. I have HEARD him say similar things and in English. Now, I have not read and heard EVERYTHING. But, unless there is evidence to the contrary, there is some reason to watch Iran - no, not the people, the regime - and to be prepared to counteract attacks. The UN, moreover, has warned Iran not to pursue the bomb, and Iran is thumbing its nose.
By: mommamia526 on February 05, 2007 at 07:28pm
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"Four years ago today, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell played a major role... "

Collin Powell will always be remmemberd as a liar, and a traitor to his country.

Becuase of Powell's LIES thousands of our troops are dead and maimed to fill the pockets of Administration officials, Oil company executives, and War profitiers everywhere.

It blows my mind that people pay to see the traitor speak, he belongs in front of the internnational criminal court.

Collin Powell will always be remembered for Lying in front of the world at the UN.

You should really be proud of yourself sir... I am sure the families of our troops who have died for your lies are thankful to have had you in the service of this nation.
By: esquire07 on February 05, 2007 at 08:02pm
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Brilliant and Brave post by Uhler. Very true that a nuke-less Iran is very weak. Though any war would be a big disaster. No reason for war. On the worst list must be Edwards and Hilary Clinton who go to AIPAC meeting and bend over backwards that they are not for peace talks with Iran or any kind of Palestinian homeland. They are war profit sell-outs. Nobody will be fooled by their war talk.
By: EllisGill on February 05, 2007 at 10:19pm
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Israel was invaded in 1947 by the combined Arab countries in attempt to destroy her upon being created by the UN. The Holocaust had a lot to do with the final incentive for the formation of Israel and the Arabs had been partially recruited by Hitler -- the Mufti of Jerusalem was a collaborator with this psychopath. The Palestinians as we know them today were Arabs who lived in the area of Israels creation, and when Israel won its war of "independence" these Arabs were not absorbed by the other Arab countries (that had just been carved out by England a couple decades back) but were deliberately kept in "refugee camps" by there Arab "brothers" to create a cause to put pressure on Israel. You might note that Arab countries looking for oil field workers routinely refuse to accept Palestinians for employment and this is simply an attempt to prevent there entry back into the Arab world. Other Arab countries are responsible for the suffering of the Palestinians in this way, and they have created a group of people that blame Israel for their problem. Yet the Arabs now understandably fear this group and have actively prevented them from having an independent country for fear of retribution. This is done by supporting extremist groups that call for the destruction of Israel and can't fathom living beside her. Also much of Arabia now fears Israel due to her western influence which extremist Muslims abhor. Iran has called for the destruction of Israel as it is controlled by such a radical government who wouldn't hesitate to destroy the west.
By: Solaris on February 05, 2007 at 10:29pm
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Weeeee.

The aipac crowd is already on you... duck and cover... their propaganda and lies get repeated here so often, you may get the feeling they are threatened by the truth... yes, truth. Too bad we've seen them so often, we don't even bother to read their Bushit.

Note, they justify everything not by debating facts, just repeating victimist lies. No, they don't try to justify espionage or their leaders warmongering... that may force them into a google war they can't win. Better to change the subject.

They managed to get 67% of Americans believing Saddam planned 9/11 using these very same tactics.

Their Hillary/Edwards dream ticket must be sold to gullible Americans, or the truth may finally come out... their organization would crumble without the pardons protecting their operators and wealthy funders.

They paid good money to control our politicians... can't throw that away without a fight.

Makes you wonder if the '06 election went to the dems just so their vote rigging buddies could avoid being exposed and stay in place to steal the big one in '08.
By: altohone on February 06, 2007 at 12:48am
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How interesting. Japan accusing the United States of historical revisionism...
By: JIM3CH on February 06, 2007 at 09:20am
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Solaris,

Suggesting that the Palestinains should now or should have ever just gone back to Jordan is tantamount to suggesting that American blacks should have just gone back to Africa when they struggled for THEIR rights here in the US, and your sentiment is motivated by the same type of racist tendencies that inspired the KKK to suggest EXACTLY the same idea.

Thankfully, the KKK has never been able to enlist the help of he US army to assist in such an abhorrent ethnic cleansing, while in Israel, it's happening every day in the form of the settlements and the occupation.

Even now, Avigdor Lieberman, a member of the knesset, is trying to ethnically cleanse Israeli Arabs from WITHIN Israel who have ALWAYS had Israeli cinizenship.

Please remember, this is AMERICA, where people who try to do such things are reviled by almost everyone and usually sent to jail for their efforts.

J
By: Justtellthetruth on February 06, 2007 at 12:26pm
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Solaris,

Suggesting that the Palestinains should now or should have ever just gone back to Jordan is tantamount to suggesting that American blacks should have just gone back to Africa when they struggled for THEIR rights here in the US, and your sentiment is motivated by the same type of racist tendencies that inspired the KKK to suggest EXACTLY the same idea.

Thankfully, the KKK has never been able to enlist the help of he US army to assist in such an abhorrent ethnic cleansing, while in Israel, it's happening every day in the form of the settlements and the occupation.

Even now, Avigdor Lieberman, a member of the knesset, is trying to ethnically cleanse Israeli Arabs from WITHIN Israel who have ALWAYS had Israeli citizenship.

Please remember, this is AMERICA, where people who try to do such things are reviled by almost everyone and usually sent to jail for their efforts.

J
By: Justtellthetruth on February 06, 2007 at 12:31pm
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