Unlike J. Thomas, I do believe Hiroshima and Nagasaki did become “deterrents” of sorts for later use of nukes (for nation states at any rate). Nukes were unprecedented, the first weapon that could potentially spell the end our species. In spite of this, there were hawkish generals on both sides in the 50’s and 60’s who were eager to use nukes (attempting to sidestep MAD scenarios with talk of “first strikes” and “acceptable losses”). The horrible pictures from 1945 went a long way towards discrediting this kind of talk by showing the true impact of using nukes – not just powerful and acceptable tactical tools to use against an entrenched enemy (as reels and reels of atomic weapon tests would suggest) but something nightmarish that carries a devastating human cost.

We’ve managed to avoid use of other horrible weapons (biological & genetic warfare, etc.) *because* of the atomic example, which forced us in no uncertain terms to deal with the fact that we had at last developed the technological means to end our existence. This type of awareness did not (and could not) exist in 1945. It evolved over time, in the shadow of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.