Regarding the article headlined “History lesson” about the teachers who used a grant to visit Japan to develop a curriculum on World War II: I would not be writing this email had those two bombs not been used.

Picture a squad of teen infantry, led by a 20-year-old corporal, landing at Yokohama. The squad was made up of replacements to take the place of dead and wounded men killed in the Okinawa battle, as well as those who had earned an Army discharge for accumulating enough points in time overseas. My squad was mostly involved in patrols to look for isolated Japanese in caves and woods.

After one patrol as we neared our headquarters, there was a large crowd around the radio shack. They were talking about the bomb that flattened a city. A second bomb was needed before the emperor of Japan agreed to end the war.

The greatest president since Washington told the generals to use the A-bomb and end this war. His name is Harry S. Truman. He saved the lives of millions of Japanese and many thousands of Americans.

Charles Bivona, retired