Consider the small and little-noticed plaque hanging in the National Museum of the US Navy that accompanies the replica of “Little Boy,” the weapon used against the people of Hiroshima: In its one paragraph, it makes clear that Truman’s political advisers overruled the military in determining how the end of the war with Japan would be approached. By and large, the top generals and admirals who managed World War II knew better. This story may assuage the conscience of the air museum visitor, but it is largely myth, fashioned to buttress our memories of the “good” war.
