Conclusion

            Oppenheimer took three very important and different stands during his life.  Oppenheimer’s three stands were a defensive stand against Nazism (fascism) in WW II; a stand for nuclear non-proliferation and sharing of scientific knowledge; and a stand against the red scare led by the Joseph McCarthy, a Senator from Wisconsin.  Each of these stands are an important part of history.

            If Oppenheimer hadn’t directed the Manhattan Project, the bomb might not have been built as quickly. “There’s little doubt that the Manhattan project shortened the 2^nd World War, and that’s a good thing.” commented Bob Jacobson, a UC Berkeley Physicist.

            Oppenheimer’s strong opposition to the proliferation of nuclear weapons still influences our life today as John David Jackson, a particle Physicist at UC Berkeley, stated, “The prevention of proliferation of nuclear weapons and the security of the huge stockpiles of nuclear weapons in the US and the former Soviet Union are probably the most pressing concerns.”

             Later in his life Robert Oppenheimer stood against political repression during the McCarthy anti-Soviet era and for himself during the security hearing. Lynn Cominsky, the chair of the Physics department at Sonoma State University, comments on this stand, “Political repression and illegal spying by our government continues, so it is still an issue.”

             The issues Oppenheimer addressed are still relevant in today’s society.  The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Freedom of Information Act, the United Nations, and the exchange of scientific information on the internet all respond in some way to Oppenheimer’s stands.