>Again, the Allies exhausted
>other options, barring a conventional invasion, before the
>decision was made to use the atomic weapon.
>
>How would you have ended the war, then? It's a fair question
>if you criticize the US for using atomic weapons there.
>What's the alternative? Everything I can think of would have
>cost a lot more lives.

So, how many lives do you think a conventional invasion would have cost? An invasion without burning down major cities to "remove their fighting spirit" obviously, as this would have killed even more people of course.

How many civilians would die in such an invasion?