--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always go back to Harry Truman: Should…" description: "\"I always go back to Harry Truman: Should we drop an atomic bomb to save 100,000 lives? That's a hell of a decision to make. Did he make that decision b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/lee-iacocca-3170_adviser_i-always-go-back-to-harry-truman-should_2675925.png" --- # I always go back to Harry Truman: Should we drop an atomic… ![“I always go back to Harry Truman: Should we drop an atomic bomb to save 100,000 lives? That's a hell of a decision to make. Did he make that decision by himself? No, he had advisers.” quote by Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/lee-iacocca-3170_adviser_i-always-go-back-to-harry-truman-should_2675925.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/lee-iacocca-3170_adviser_i-always-go-back-to-harry-truman-should_2675925.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/lee-iacocca-3170_adviser_i-always-go-back-to-harry-truman-should_2675925.png) > “I always go back to Harry Truman: Should we drop an atomic bomb to save 100,000 lives? That's a hell of a decision to make. Did he make that decision by himself? No, he had advisers.” [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truman’s atomic bomb decision involved advisors, showing that major choices are collaborative. **In simple terms:** Truman didn’t decide alone; advisors mattered. Key Takeaway Recognize the value of counsel. Themes leadership decision‑making collaboration Mood analytical serious Type historical ethical When to use this quote - government policy - crisis management - team deliberation Key Concepts ethics war strategy Questions to Reflect On - Who should bear responsibility for collective decisions? - How do advisors influence ethical outcomes? A Different Perspective Moral responsibility is shared. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atomic bomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atomic-bomb/) [Bombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) ## Related quotes > [Harry Truman wrote scathing letters, but he almost never sent them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/harry-truman-wrote-scathing-letters-but-he-almost-never-sent-them/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [My favourite president, and the one I admired most, was Harry Truman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/my-favourite-president-and-the-one-i-admired-most-was-harry-truman/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [My father's political heroes were Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-stephens/my-father-s-political-heroes-were-franklin-roosevelt-and-harry-truman/) [Bret Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-stephens/) > [Harry S. Truman had his moods. His birthplace is the only tourist attraction in America where you don't see Japanese with cameras.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-whitney-brown/harry-s-truman-had-his-moods-his-birthplace-is-the-only-tourist/) [A. Whitney Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-whitney-brown/) > [I loved Harry Truman with all my heart and soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willard-scott/i-loved-harry-truman-with-all-my-heart-and-soul/) [Willard Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willard-scott/) > [ He \[Harry S. Truman\] loved politicians - even Republicans. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-truman-daniel/he-harry-s-truman-loved-politicians-even-republicans/) [Margaret Truman Daniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-truman-daniel/) > [Harry Truman was courageous enough to command that racial segregation be ended in the military. I was serving in a submarine in the U.S.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/harry-truman-was-courageous-enough-to-command-that-racial-segregation/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [“Roosevelt loved the subtleties of human relations...He was sensitive to nuances in a way that Harry Truman never was and never would be. Truman,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/roosevelt-loved-the-subtleties-of-human-relations-he-was-sensitive-to/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [“Buy only what you really need and cannot do without,” President Harry Truman once said on TV.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-h-naylor/buy-only-what-you-really-need-and-cannot-do-without-president-harry/) Thomas H Naylor > [Let me tell you, the first president to recognize the state of Israel was Harry Truman, a Democrat. And every president since, Democrat and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-durbin/let-me-tell-you-the-first-president-to-recognize-the-state-of-israel/) [Dick Durbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-durbin/) > [Some of our finest leaders were not intellectuals at all, and I admire them enormously because they weren't. Harry Truman wasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/some-of-our-finest-leaders-were-not-intellectuals-at-all-and-i-admire/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [ “If there had been any formidable body of cannibals in the country he \[Harry Truman\] would have promised to provide them with free missionaries,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken-2/if-there-had-been-any-formidable-body-of-cannibals-in-the-country-he/) [H.L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken-2/) > [Despite its flaws, the American electoral system has produced Lincoln, the two Roosevelts, and Harry Truman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/despite-its-flaws-the-american-electoral-system-has-produced-lincoln/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [ Leo Crowley, Harry \[Truman\]'s Foreign Economic Administrator, tells Congressmen the theory...: 'If you create good governments in foreign countries, automatically you will have better… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/leo-crowley-harry-truman-s-foreign-economic-administrator-tells/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Harry Truman's decision to fire Douglas MacArthur at the height of the Korean War in April 1951 shocked the American political system and astonished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/harry-truman-s-decision-to-fire-douglas-macarthur-at-the-height-of/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) ## More by Lee Iacocca > [The right decision is the wrong decision if it's made too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-right-decision-is-the-wrong-decision-if-it-s-made-too-late/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [“Apply yourself. Get all the education you can, but then...do something. Don't just stand there, make it happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/apply-yourself-get-all-the-education-you-can-but-then-do-something/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [The ability to concentrate and to use time well is everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-ability-to-concentrate-and-to-use-time-well-is-everything/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [There are times in everyone's life when something constructive is born out of adversity... when things seem so bad that you've got to grab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/there-are-times-in-everyone-s-life-when-something-constructive-is/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/in-a-completely-rational-society-the-best-of-us-would-be-teachers-and/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [It was emotional when Chrysler sold out to the Germans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/it-was-emotional-when-chrysler-sold-out-to-the-germans/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/we-are-continually-faced-by-great-opportunities-brilliantly-disguised/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-greatest-discovery-of-my-generation-is-that-human-beings-can/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/no-matter-what-you-ve-done-for-yourself-or-for-humanity-if-you-can-t/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Be creative. Use unconventional thinking. And have the guts to carry it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/be-creative-use-unconventional-thinking-and-have-the-guts-to-carry-it/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [ They're on you day and night. Their oversight is just too extreme \[. . .\] That's why our 10-year loan, we paid it back… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/they-re-on-you-day-and-night-their-oversight-is-just-too-extreme-that/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [I hire people brighter than me and then I get out of their way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/i-hire-people-brighter-than-me-and-then-i-get-out-of-their-way/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [I have found that being honest is the best technique I can use. Right up front, tell people what you're trying to accomplish and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/i-have-found-that-being-honest-is-the-best-technique-i-can-use-right/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Your legacy should be that you made it better than it was when you got it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/your-legacy-should-be-that-you-made-it-better-than-it-was-when-you/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Never rest on your oars as a boss. If you do, the whole company starts sinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/never-rest-on-your-oars-as-a-boss-if-you-do-the-whole-company-starts/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) [Explore all 138 Lee Iacocca quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) ## More Adviser quotes > [In 1949 there was a new thing called Television, to which my agency and advisers opposed as a performance medium.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-young/in-1949-there-was-a-new-thing-called-television-to-which-my-agency/) [Loretta Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-young/) > [President Bush deliberately did not apologize for things and that’s because advisers around him, including those there, felt that the press corps would jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gregory/president-bush-deliberately-did-not-apologize-for-things-and-that-s/) [David Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gregory/) > [The best adviser is God, the good listener is heart but the mind of person always confused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meicee/the-best-adviser-is-god-the-good-listener-is-heart-but-the-mind-of/) Meicee > [No adviser to a president is going to get his way all of the time, but at a minimum, that adviser should be able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-stephens/no-adviser-to-a-president-is-going-to-get-his-way-all-of-the-time-but/) [Bret Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-stephens/) > [Men tend to leave their financial adviser at a single-digit-percent rate in any given year. And women leave their husband and their joint financial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sallie-krawcheck/men-tend-to-leave-their-financial-adviser-at-a-single-digit-percent/) [Sallie Krawcheck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sallie-krawcheck/) > [Steve Bannon, too, needs to be a unifier, doesn't he, as the senior adviser.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megyn-kelly/steve-bannon-too-needs-to-be-a-unifier-doesn-t-he-as-the-senior/) [Megyn Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megyn-kelly/) > [Asking for advice is an act of humility… The act alone says, "I need you." The decision maker and the adviser are pushed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-bakke/asking-for-advice-is-an-act-of-humility-the-act-alone-says-i-need-you/) [Dennis Bakke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-bakke/) > [It is the lawyers who run our civilization for us -- our governments, our business, our private lives. Most legislators are lawyers; they make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rodell/it-is-the-lawyers-who-run-our-civilization-for-us-our-governments-our/) [Fred Rodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rodell/) > [The truth then is, that the Russian Comintern is still confessedly engaged in endeavoring to foment war in order to facilitate revolution, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-fahey/the-truth-then-is-that-the-russian-comintern-is-still-confessedly/) [Denis Fahey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-fahey/) > [French troops arrived in Afghanistan last week, and not a minute too soon. The French are acting as advisers to the Taliban, to teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/french-troops-arrived-in-afghanistan-last-week-and-not-a-minute-too/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Republicans want to punish work and reward wealth; hence the high payroll tax and the low dividend tax. Said one Bush economic adviser, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-begala/republicans-want-to-punish-work-and-reward-wealth-hence-the-high/) [Paul Begala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-begala/) > [As for Vietnam, what matters is that Kennedy successfully resisted pressure to send anything more than military advisers, a stance that was a likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/as-for-vietnam-what-matters-is-that-kennedy-successfully-resisted/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [If economists were good at business, they would be rich men instead of advisers to rich men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-kerkorian/if-economists-were-good-at-business-they-would-be-rich-men-instead-of/) [Kirk Kerkorian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-kerkorian/) > [I am deeply worried about Donald Trump on matters of national security. He doesn't know anything himself about it, and he has appointed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-kaine/i-am-deeply-worried-about-donald-trump-on-matters-of-national/) [Tim Kaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-kaine/) > [For all the popularity of spiritual advisers in South Korea, it still shocks to see the leaders of huge public companies relying on fortune-tellers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-young-ha/for-all-the-popularity-of-spiritual-advisers-in-south-korea-it-still/) [Kim Young-ha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-young-ha/) Browse all 208 Adviser quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I always go back to Harry Truman: Should we drop an atomic bomb to save 100,000 lives? That's a hell of a decision to make. Did he make that decision by himself? 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