Hiroshima Day: Time to act against nuclear weapons

Today is the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb by the United States on the city of Hiroshima, Japan, incinerating the city and killing at least 140,000 residents. For the first time, an envoy from the U.S. to Japan attended the memorial ceremony making the occasion. It’s about time.

According to New York Times reports, “Hiroshima’s mayor welcomed the [U.S.] Ambassador John Roos and praised President Obama as one of the world leaders who ‘wielded their powerful influence’ to rid the world of nuclear weapons.”

When I read definitions of the word “terrorism,” I often think about Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- cities flattened, civilians murdered en masse, the terror that lasted in the bodies of many people who were contaminated by the fallout. All this makes a car bomb look like a firecracker by comparison.

Obama is right to want to rid the world of such weapons. Today is a good day to support him in that goal… with letters to Senators supporting the small step already taken: the START Treaty with Russia.