THE MORAL BURDEN OF HENRY STIMSON Colleague Evan Thomas. Evan Thomas introduces Henry Stimson, the US Secretary of War, describing him as a 77-year-old "Christian gentleman" and moralist who is simultaneously a realist about the use of power. While Stimson oversaw the devastating firebombing of Tokyo, which killed 100,000 people in a single night, he harbored deep moral qualms about the war's brutality and the atomic bomb, which he viewed as a "Frankenstein monster." The segment also highlights Stimson's failing health and his contrasting relationships with Franklin Roosevelt, a fellow elite, and the newly inaugurated Harry Truman, whom he initially found difficult to engage. NUMBER 1
1945 OKINAWA