Should U.S have dropped the bomb on Japan?

Many claimed that the dropping of the two bombs on Japan on the 6th and 9th of August 1945 is crucial to the ending of World War II, while others claimed that it was wrong as it claimed many innocent lives. I feel that U.S should have dropped the bomb on Japan as not only ended the war that killed many innocent lives. Furthermore, the ultimatum which was issued on the 26th of July 1945 which outlined the terms of surrender was rejected by the Japanese. The ultimatum stated that if Japan did not surrender, it will face "prompt and utter destruction".

Japan had put up a strong resistance, not willing to lose the battle. They did not want to surrender even though Hiroshima had been bombed on the 6th of August 1945, resulting in a high death toll. Hence the best way was to launch another attack on Japan to force them to surrender. In addition, the U.S had been fighting a massive war since 1941, hence morale and resources were very low. However each of them refused to stop, and both of them were determined to win. The best thing to do is to bring the war to a quick end, reducing the number of casualties. The war would have continued if they did not drop the bomb, causing many more to be injured.

I will be honest; I do not agree that the bombs should be dropped at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, due to the high number of civilian members.However I do still believe that the atomic bomb had put a stop to the World War. Once more I bring in the picture that a longer war would be equal to more casualties, and that is what Japan intended to carry out should they not surrender. Japan would have continued to fight if given the chance, and they would. They strongly believed in their country, and the scary thing is that everyone of them would fight hard to the bitter end, laying their lives down for their emperor and their country.

Some people might argue that there is a chance that Japan would still continue to fight after the bombs are dropped. Let's face it; nobody knows. The strong resistance that they have put up is proof. For example, "kamikaze" pilots load their planes with explosives and are willing to kill themselves by nose-diving it into their enemy targets. There might be a chance that they would fight back, but they surrendered due to the fact that they do not want a high death toll for their country. Hence U.S should have dropped the bomb on Japan as it put an end to the war, reducing the number of casualties which would have occurred if not for engaging in battle.

What would the main character be likely to do if s/he visited your classroom?

I have just read finished "Scorpia Rising" written by Anthony Horowitz, which is about a teenage boy being recruited against his will into the world of espionage and is sent on a mission again. However, the mastermind of the criminal operation Alex is sent to uncover is Scorpia, which is a criminal organisation which was considerably successful until the arrival of Alex. They, needless to say, wanted to get revenge, as he had uncovered 2 of their operations, and survived an attack by a sniper sent by them. In addition, he feels tired as he has been sent on missions for countless of times, and it took up nearly a whole year. As such, he is forced to keep quiet about what he is doing.

What if Alex were to step into our classroom? I guess he would be very shy as he has constantly has to lie to his old friends at school when he was away for missions. In addition, he would also need help in studies as he was on missions. He would most likely sit at a corner and not talk to anyone. However, he would be very friendly and respond politely if one greeted him. Though he is shy and friendly most of the time, he would definitely help people he sees in need. On one occasion, a sniper miraculously positioned himself on the roof opposite the school and "tried" to take a shot at him. However, Alex managed to defend his good friend by pushing him down to the floor, out of range from the bullets.

Alex is now fifteen years old, and he has ,fortunately, left the world of espionage for good. He is also an expert in martial arts. He hopes to be just a normal boy, to go for his examinations, and to behave like a normal boy. However, he has recently suffered an emotional trauma as his housekeeper was killed by Scorpia. I hope he would be able to recover from it as time passes, and leave at last free from the world of espionage which had been manipulating his childhood from the start

Should cigarette smoking be banned?

Everybody knows that smoking is harmful to our health. However, there are still many people who smoked regardless of the health warnings given to them. They repeatedly smoke a great number of cigarettes every day. Hence should cigarette smoking be banned? In my opinion, it definitely must be banned.

Firstly, smoking poses a danger to our health. Smoking not only causes lung cancer, it also increases the risk of miscarriages in pregnant mothers, ruptures our lungs, and causes other lethal cancers. Research has also shown that one in 2 lifetime smokers die from their habits, and half of the deaths occur in middle age. Many smokers suffer from heart attacks and strokes due to the strain in blood vessels and the heart caused by nicotine and carbon monoxide.

Secondly, second-hand smoke exhaled from smokers also poses a threat to the health of others. People round the smoker have a general increased risk of heart disease and cancer. Some children are even found to have brain tumours caused by such second-hand smoke. In additon, people are found to have skin disorders due to the second-smoke of smokers. The smoker is not only putting his life in danger, he is also placing other people's life in danger.

Therefore, more bans must be placed in public places to improve the health of the people, with severe consequences to offenders who infringe the ban. Imposing a higher cost in purchasing cigarettes would also help to reduced the number of smokers. Hopefully the number of smokers in Singapore would be reduced; we would then live in a clean and healthy environment.

When should parents let teens make their own decisions?

Many teenagers are often complaining that their lives are restricted as their parents control them in almost every aspect of their lives. However, many teenagers are unable to understand that whatever their parents do is for their own good. Many teenagers, if given the right to make their own decisions, would make the wrong choices in life, and if it is serious, it might affect their whole life. They are indeed not yet mature enough to have control over their own life. Hence I feel that parents should let teens make their own decisions only if they know that he/she is mature enough.

Many teenagers are often influenced by their peers around them. hence they might be easily convinced into making a wrong decisions. It is definitely crucial that their parents are there to stop them should they make a wrong choice. Teenagers should also obey their parents and not shout at them, as although their actions might seem unreasonable at first, but they are still for the well being of them. Hence unnecessary conflicts can be prevented this way and the parent is able to ensure that the teenagers do not make a wrong choice.

In addition, many teenagers are often distracted by the "latest trend" up and about. For example, if some people in class got the newest version of iPhones, the rest might be influenced to purchase such phones too. Therefore, parents are there to stop them from getting influenced. After all, parents have also been through childhood and worked in the harsh society, hence they would definitely know the best choice for their children.

Many might argue that being restricted by parents makes teenagers to dependent on them. I do not agree. When the teenagers grow into mature young adults, they would understand their parents' words and not make the same mistake again. Therefore, parents should only let teens make their own decisions only when they have reached a certain maturity.

Should cell phones still be continued to used?

Nowadays, practically everyone owns a cellphone which one can carry around for easy contact with others. There are even features such as cameras and games in newer versions of phones. Many teenagers also own different kinds of phones. Indeed, cellphones play an essential part in many people's lives. Therefore one might think that cellphones should continue to be used as it has a lot of benefits. However, I do not agree as there are also negative effects to carrying cellphones around with us, particularly the harmful effects to our health

Research carried out recently has shown that cellphones does have harmful effects to our health. The consequences of being exposed to the microwave radiation through mobile phones is that electromagnetic waves "alters activity of the brain, cause disturbance in sleep, and causes difficulty in concentration". In addition, the usage of mobile phones have been related to Alzheimer's Disease and Cancer. I do not think that we should not take care of our health just for the sake of communicating with each other. Our health is of utmost importance as without a healthy body, we are not able to survive.

In addition, cellphones are also very distracting to people. Some teenagers might not bother to listen to their teachers in class; instead they spend their time either texting messages to each other, surfing the internet or playing games on their cellphones. Therefore, the students might not be able to learn what the teachers had thought them that day, and that lesson is considered a waste of time. Nowadays, some students also show off by buying the latest versions of handphones, which is in fact a waste of money. Many people also tend to abuse their phones if there is an internet connection.

Furthermore, cellphones might also pose a danger to people. There have been many car accidents as drivers talk on their handphones as they are driving. They tend to lose focus on driving if they talk on their phones, hence there is a high possibility of car accidents happening. Also, it reduces the number of face-to-face times together with friend and families.

Therefore I do feel that mobile phones are harmful for us and should NOT be continued to be used. So next time, when you see your friends playing with their handphones, do not forget about the harmful effects it has to our body and the disadvantages to having one.

Home Learning---War Diary

Dear Diary,

Another blood-splattered day. I can't practically imagine what is going to happen from the future if this were to continue. I keep having nightmares almost everyday, and I could even suddenly wake up in the dead of the night, my body drenched with perspiration, the bloody scenes of soldiers dying ingrained in my mind, their screams echoing through my ears. What has the human come to? Why do we invent such artillery just for the destruction of mankind? Why do we go against our beliefs, and slay countless of innocent men, who wish for peace and tranquility?

Had a terrifying experience today too. As me and my comrade, Roran ran into the battlefield, we saw bullets strafing almost everywhere. As we fired our guns and used knives to slash our enemy, a bullet powered deep into Roran's legs and he collapsed like an axed tree. He was howling in pain, but I could not do anything to help him. If I carried him back, I would be endanger my life and his as we would be sitting ducks as we walked through the battlefield. But I couldn't just leave him alone. But better me than both of us killed. I could not stop remembering the despaired look on his face as I left him. The emotional torture is too great. I feel that my soul had been mutilated beyond repair.

I could only wait. And see. Hope I would survive.

Yours truly,

Saphira

Error in date of blog posts

I had just realized that the date given to the latest three blogs were given at a wrong date. They are posted on the 20th of April, 24th of April and 26th of April respectively. This blog post is not on the 6th of May, it is on the 7th of May.