A weird idea of an alternate real life timeline.

(Please be aware that this post is NOT actual historical information, but a consideration of what might have happened had certain events occurred differently, or not at all.)

A strange series of thoughts, theories, and possible outcomes started playing through my head before I started writing this post. It's a possible difference of events and outcomes during the final stages of World War II in the Pacific Theatre in the months before the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan against Hiroshima and Nagasaki.


Essentially, as it becomes evident that the Japanese are now in a losing position against the U.S. Armed Forces and U.S. Navy, the Japanese civilian population is beginning to lose faith in the leadership of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito was his personal name) and Prime Minister Kantarō Suzuki. Aggravating the fact is the policy of an "honourable death" through suicide tactics, such as men being trained to dive under U.S. tanks while having explosives strapped to their bodies, and schoolgirls being instructed to attack U.S. soldiers with sharpened spears. The tension comes to a breaking point after firebombing by U.S. aerial forces consumes many former city centres in devastating firestorms. With no intention of surrender by the Japanese leadership, the warning message sent by the U.S. government prior to the atomic bombings is received by the leadership, who publicly announces their defiance against this threat, and stands their ground on their stance.


But this ends up being the breaking point for the Japanese non-combatant population. Having born witness to the all-consuming firestorms from the constant firebombing runs, and the certainty that standing their ground against the Allies would surely result in their complete annihilation, the Japanese people spark the beginnings of the Japanese Civil War. Through the uprising and infighting between the Japanese public, and the Imperial Japanese Army, the chain of command is fractured, and there is mutiny within the military ranks of soldiers who support the reasoning behind the public rebellion. The original stance of "victory, or death" is nearly forgotten in the chaos that erupts throughout the home islands.


All of this has not, however, gone unnoticed by the United States military and elected leadership. There are now second thoughts about deploying this experimental, untested super-weapon (Trinity had already been successfully detonated by this time). With the Japanese military struggling to maintain its chain of command, and the public having lost all loyalty to the Royal Family, the U.S. decides to watch from a distance, with no involvement. The civil war ends with the killing of Emperor Shōwa, and the dismantling of the Imperial ruling system. Prime Minister Suzuki is spared death; being a representative of a leader elected by the people, not a leader through birthright. The first significant national event that occurs afterwards is surrender negotiations with the Allies.


The dismantling of the former Japanese military forces and armour is supervised by the U.S. Armed Forces and Navy. Since the atomic bombs ended up not being deployed in this time-line, the Soviet Union does not declare war on Japan; there is no longer a need to do so. With no further incentive to continue developing nuclear weapons, and having no data from the originally planned deployment against Japan, there is no "nuclear arms race" between the United States and the Soviet Union; hence, the Cold War never manifests, and the subsequent hyper-development of military technology never occurs. With no proxy-wars from the Cold War era, the United States does not develop deeply hostile relations with the nations of the Middle East that were originally controlled by the Soviets. Which means no Gulf War, no Vietnam War, no 20th century Iraq War, and perhaps others as well. Tensions are kept at a minimum, while the nations of post-WWII attempt to recover from the brutal conflict.


The budget funds that would have originally been put towards Cold War weapons and technology research is instead invested on economic aid and recovery, and public sector research and development. A United Nations equivalent world council is formed to oversee recovery operations, monitor world events, and establishes international economic trading laws and human rights standards between member nations. Nations that are members and wish to remain members must abide by the international fair trade and worker's compensation laws and rules. Violations without proper compensation and/or acceptable procedures will have the violating nation removed from the council, and all economic trading links and benefits cut to and from the nation.


This is pretty much a rough draft so far (and it took WAY too long to write and proofread, *wipes sweat from forehead*), how does it look so far?

That's pretty good. I never really thought about how it would be if the Japanese had surrendered before the atomic bombs were dropped by Truman.

[size=10]Does this mean I get to blame Japan for today's problems?[/h]

I wouldn't really say they would have been to "blame", they would still end up becoming an economy oriented nation during the dismantling of their former armed forces (in my alternative time-line theory, anyway). I'm certain a good part of today's problems would have existed regardless of that outcome, but there probably would have been a host of different problems without all that military tech. For one thing, what if the Soviet Union doesn't end up dissolving? Does the leadership there remain totalitarian, or does it undergo reform as well? These are events I might not be able to create plausible outcomes on, but it's still something to think about.

It looks good, is this a plot for a story you're planning to write?
Because from this, it sounds like it would be an interesting story at the least.

In my opinion, America wouldn't have abandoned the project for the atomic bomb. They didn't stop making new military technology after WW1, after all. And with it not having been used in the field previously, they may not have agreed to MAD, leading to a nuclear apocalypse, or America holding the world hostage if no-one else had got their hands on the technology.

But those two scenarios have already been used in loads of stories, so I think your alternate history is better. And it's still an entirely plausible one if the scientists had refused to continue working on the bomb, since the war was over.

Unfortunately, as much as I'd LOVE to write a fiction with this as a base plot theme, I SUCK at story writing. So I don't plan on it, no. I am, however, quite good at writing "descriptions" for places, people, and things in general. What I wrote here was simply to have it somewhere so I would remember that I had it in my mind at all, and to give others something to think about. Deep thoughts every so often is good for people, is it not?

That's fine, deep thoughts are certainly good, and it's still a good setting. I would ask you if I could use it if I wasn't already writing some of my own stories.

Feel free to use the theme and concept as you see fit, with due credits of course, :)

Thanks, I'll of course reference you if I use it. If I ever finish the stuff I'm working on now, that is.

I wrote a paragraph in half an hour earlier. That's like a word per minute.