You’ve heard of samurai, perhaps the most quintessential symbol of Japan, but how well do you really know these famed, so-called warriors? Did you know the term “samurai” actually refers to the samurai class and that half of that class were women? Perhaps you’ve heard of bushidō, the “way of the warrior,” yet were you […]
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Asia and the Middle East
Review of The Most Awful Responsibility: Truman and the Secret Struggle for Control of the Atomic Age (2025)
President Harry S. Truman is a wild card in historians’ dueling storylines about the atomic bombings of Japan at the end of World War II. For “orthodox” historians, Truman and his advisors let casualty projections, Japanese governmental paralysis, and American public opinion lead them to a coldly rational decision to drop the terrifying new weapons […]
