Remembering the Japanese Surrender
Seventy years ago tomorrow, Japanese Emperor Hirohito broadcast to his people that he had accepted terms of surrender, thus effectively ending World War II. The official treaty signing occurred on Sept. 2, 1945, aboard the USS Missouri, and that day is the official “VJ Day,” but today’s anniversary is worth remembering. On Aug. 6 and 9, respectively, the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Doing so prevented a likely invasion of the Japanese main island, and thus saved hundreds of thousands of American lives. Today is a reminder that tyranny must be defeated, not appeased, if Liberty is to flourish.
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- Japan
- World War II
- national days