Hibakusha felt guilty about surviving when most of the people they knew and their families perished. In 1955, many of the hibkusha came to the United States for plastic surgery. They were nicknamed the Hiroshima Maidens. These were the women who were severely disfigured by the atomic bomb. One lady wrote after she got home that the surgery "has made me an entirely new life." (Feinberg, 1995, 27-28) Japan was already weak as a military strength before the atomic bombs were dropped. After they were dropped, Japan knew it was only going to be a matter of time that more atomic bombs were dropped if they did not surrender. So, on August 14, 1945, the Japanese government accepted American terms for surrender. On September 2, 1945, formal surrender ceremonies took place aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay. On behalf of the Emperor of Japan, Mamoru Shigemitsu signed and the Supreme Allied Commander, General Douglas MacArthur, signed for the Allies. The treaty that was signed that day was called the Potsdam Declaration. The treaty said, "From the moment of surrender, the authority of the Emperor and the Japanese Government to rule the state shall be subject to the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers." Later, the Japanese Emperor announced over the radio, "The enemy has begun to employ a new and most cruel bomb, the power of which to do damage is indeed incalculable." (Wallace, 1993, 18-20) After the U.S. made the atomic bomb a reality, other countries were soon engaged in developing their own atomic bombs. Therefore, the United States indirectly was a cause of the Cold War. When other countries found out how to make the atomic bomb, they used their knowledge to enhance their power amongst other countries. Many small countries could now cause destruction to the whole world. The United States' bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the immediate beginning to the atomic age. This was the beginning of an era where destruction was an easy task...