He will be the first sitting U.S. president to visit.
I did not know that. I had never thought of it before. It has come up before! Other presidents declined because the decision to drop the A-bomb is popular in the U.S., unpopular in Japan and prior presidents thought it would be interpreted as an apology.
The White House has debated this for months.
"...he will not apologize..." (Reuters)
Hiroshima's and Nagasaki's mayors issued written invitations through the U.S. ambassador in Tokyo five times. (Japan Times
“We would like for you, a leader of a nuclear superpower, to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the occasion of the G-7 Summit of next May in order to listen to hibakusha’s [Atomic bomb survivors] testimonies [Do not listen! Obama, do not listen to hibakusha testimony!] and wishes for peace, and deepen your understanding of the actual damage wrought by a single atomic bomb,” [He understands. He does not need to deepen his understanding.] the latest letter said.
Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize early in his presidency in 2009 in part for making nuclear nonproliferation a centerpiece of his agenda, Obama on May 27 will tour the site of the world's first nuclear bombing with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Oh God. I thought I had buried that so deeply in my memory it was irretrievable.
With the end of his last term in office approaching in January, Obama will "highlight his continued commitment to pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons," the White House said in a statement.
"He will not revisit the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of World War II. Instead, he will offer a forward-looking vision focused on our shared future," Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, wrote in a separate blog.
Shut up, Rhodes.
On the final day of the summit in Japan, Obama and Abe will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park near the spot where a U.S. warplane dropped an atomic bomb 71 years ago.
Abe, speaking to reporters in Tokyo, said he hoped "to turn this into an opportunity for the U.S. and Japan to together pay tribute to the memories of the victims" of the nuclear bombing.
Obama, that's what Abe said. He sees your visit as an opportunity to pay tribute to the victims. Are you going to pay tribute to the victims? Even if you don't, that is how Abe is interpreting it. Abe boxed Obama in with that statement. Now, Obama doesn't have to apologize or issue regrets-DO NOT SAY THE WORD "REGRET," OKAY?-his visit is his apology even if he doesn't say a word. WHY ARE YOU GOING, OBAMA?! CANCEL! GET CONVENIENTLY SICK ON SUSHI! GO PLAY GOLF! IF YOU SHOW UP, YOU HAVE APOLOGIZED, DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT? YOU NEED TO "DEEPEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING" OF THAT.
Lisbeth Gronlund, co-director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' Global Security Program, said Obama must "do more than give another beautiful speech" and should announce concrete action on nuclear disarmament when he visits Hiroshima. (Reuters)
NO! No speeches, especially beautiful ones! Shut the fuck up while you're there. Do not say a WORD. Drive-by, do a drive-by, five minutes tops. POKER FACE! Put on your poker face!...You don't have a poker face. You gonna cry? Do NOT cry. Please. Do not even bite the bottom lip.
He's going to go. He's going to give a beautiful speech. He's going to look sad, somber. I don't think he will cry. He shouldn't go. A visit to Hiroshima is a job for a right-wing president, Nixon, Reagan, Trump, not a pivoting flower child. JUST SAY NO! But he's going. He doesn't listen to me.
I did not know that. I had never thought of it before. It has come up before! Other presidents declined because the decision to drop the A-bomb is popular in the U.S., unpopular in Japan and prior presidents thought it would be interpreted as an apology.
The White House has debated this for months.
"...he will not apologize..." (Reuters)
Hiroshima's and Nagasaki's mayors issued written invitations through the U.S. ambassador in Tokyo five times. (Japan Times
“We would like for you, a leader of a nuclear superpower, to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the occasion of the G-7 Summit of next May in order to listen to hibakusha’s [Atomic bomb survivors] testimonies [Do not listen! Obama, do not listen to hibakusha testimony!] and wishes for peace, and deepen your understanding of the actual damage wrought by a single atomic bomb,” [He understands. He does not need to deepen his understanding.] the latest letter said.
Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize early in his presidency in 2009 in part for making nuclear nonproliferation a centerpiece of his agenda, Obama on May 27 will tour the site of the world's first nuclear bombing with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Oh God. I thought I had buried that so deeply in my memory it was irretrievable.
With the end of his last term in office approaching in January, Obama will "highlight his continued commitment to pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons," the White House said in a statement.
"He will not revisit the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of World War II. Instead, he will offer a forward-looking vision focused on our shared future," Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, wrote in a separate blog.
Shut up, Rhodes.
On the final day of the summit in Japan, Obama and Abe will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park near the spot where a U.S. warplane dropped an atomic bomb 71 years ago.
Abe, speaking to reporters in Tokyo, said he hoped "to turn this into an opportunity for the U.S. and Japan to together pay tribute to the memories of the victims" of the nuclear bombing.
Obama, that's what Abe said. He sees your visit as an opportunity to pay tribute to the victims. Are you going to pay tribute to the victims? Even if you don't, that is how Abe is interpreting it. Abe boxed Obama in with that statement. Now, Obama doesn't have to apologize or issue regrets-DO NOT SAY THE WORD "REGRET," OKAY?-his visit is his apology even if he doesn't say a word. WHY ARE YOU GOING, OBAMA?! CANCEL! GET CONVENIENTLY SICK ON SUSHI! GO PLAY GOLF! IF YOU SHOW UP, YOU HAVE APOLOGIZED, DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT? YOU NEED TO "DEEPEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING" OF THAT.
Lisbeth Gronlund, co-director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' Global Security Program, said Obama must "do more than give another beautiful speech" and should announce concrete action on nuclear disarmament when he visits Hiroshima. (Reuters)
NO! No speeches, especially beautiful ones! Shut the fuck up while you're there. Do not say a WORD. Drive-by, do a drive-by, five minutes tops. POKER FACE! Put on your poker face!...You don't have a poker face. You gonna cry? Do NOT cry. Please. Do not even bite the bottom lip.
He's going to go. He's going to give a beautiful speech. He's going to look sad, somber. I don't think he will cry. He shouldn't go. A visit to Hiroshima is a job for a right-wing president, Nixon, Reagan, Trump, not a pivoting flower child. JUST SAY NO! But he's going. He doesn't listen to me.