Purple Heart Medals and Japan

[XemaSab]

During World War II, nearly 500,000 Purple Heart medals were manufactured in anticipation of the estimated casualties resulting from the planned Allied invasion of Japan. To the present date, total combined American military casualties of the sixty-five years following the end of World War II—including the Korean and Vietnam Wars—have not exceeded that number. In 2003, there were still 120,000 of these Purple Heart medals in stock. There are so many in surplus that combat units in Iraq and Afghanistan are able to keep Purple Hearts on-hand for immediate award to wounded soldiers in the field.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_Heart

Dropping the bomb was a terrible thing, but an invasion of Japan would have been a lot worse for both sides.

[Recursion]

1. It must be early August on DU

It's a good point, but I don't think anybody will convince anybody about this, ever.