Why the US's final World War II victories over the Japanese made it think twice about actually invading Japan

On the night of March 25, 1945, some 300 Japanese soldiers launched a surprise attack on Airfield Number 2 on Iwo Jima. They were among the last of the 21,000-strong garrison that had fought tooth and nail for every inch of the island over the previous 35 days. US troops had captured the airfield …