How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
We are proud in Norvelt that our men and women fought in the war to liberate oppressed people and allow their found voices to record the history of that terrible time. (21.53)
Miss Volker here hints that war might be justifiable if it is pursued in order to free those who are oppressed. But notice that she's just as proud that the soldiers allowed their voices to be recorded as she is that they fought. In her view, it seems like telling history is as important as winning wars.
Quote #8
But what the atomic bombing of Hiroshima should teach everyone is that you don't win a war by being more moral or ethical or nicer or more democratic than your enemy [...] No, you win a war by being tougher and meaner and more ruthless than your enemy. You beat, burn, and crush them into the ground. This is the historical rule of winning a war. (23.37)
This may be the "historical rule of winning a war," but this is definitely not how warfare is always described. It's a lot easier to convince people to fight if you talk about war, and your cause, in terms of honor, duty, and glory. Other writers have taken up this idea (check out Wilfred Owen's "Dulce et Decorum Est").
Quote #9
Hiroshima was not a big military target. Nor was it even a battle. It was an out-and-out sneak-attack slaughtering of innocent people. It was a massacre. We killed seventy thousand civilians in one atomic blink, and seventy thousand died a little later on. (23.37)
Not only does Miss Volker provide another comment on the harsh nature of warfare, but we also get an important bit of historical context. Never before the atomic weapons developed during World War II has the world seen the potential for such catastrophic destruction that could literally change the world forever. This potential is one reason for Jack's Dad's obsession with "Commie" attacks and building his bomb shelter.