Aug 6, 2012
The box of photos that Dirk Oster sent me (see previous post) taken by his father, Bernard Oster contained 17 pictures of the leveling of Hiroshima (and Nagasaki) (Aug 6 and 9, 1945). I have been studying the pictures and trying to sort out which flattened city is which. I’ve looked at all the horrific pictures on the internet, studying them carefully to decide which pictures are from Hiroshima. Well, all I have for my efforts is a queasy stomach. That’s not entirely true; the following two photos are most definitely of Hiroshima.
I fear that the citizens of the world have lost HISTORICAL CONTEXT about many things. In this fidgety, tense and kind of dark era, we can only pray that the leaders of all the nations – especially the ones with a “finger on the trigger” – pause and reflect on the sheer and utter desecration of human dignity that occurred 67 years ago today in Japan.
Thanks, Dirk, for sharing these amazing pictures.
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’ll remember that Norm Bayley was the commanding officer of the Marine Division aboard the Boston. He transferred aboard late in the War – and, despite the fact that I cannot tell you all the details yet – I can tell you that he was the first American on the ground in Hiroshima after the bomb was dropped. The full story of Norm and his amazing exploits will be the core of Vol.3 of Baked Beans. (I can also tell you that his grandson is writing a book about Norm’s AMAZING exploits during the entire War – starting in Guadalcanal . . . .)
Steve