The bombing of Japan during WWII was not at all random, there were three main events that led up to it, the Philippine-American War, the Japanese wanting control of the Pacific, and the attack on Pearl Harbor.
In the late 1800's and earlier 1900's, during the spread of imperialism, the US set up bases in the Philippines, and eventually tried to "help" them, leading to a revolution and a war. The Americans won, and gained control of the Philippines, beginning their presences in the Pacific Ocean.
The next cause was the Japanese's need for imperialism because of lack of resources. Japan doesn't have a large amount of resources, therefore they must expand in order to increase their industrialization. The US was a limiting factor in this, because they were competing for resources, so Japan decided they needed to remove their presences from the Pacific area.
This leads us to the final reason, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States primary naval base in the Pacific Ocean. The Japan thought if they attacked this naval base they could cripple their Navy Forces, and there was no way they could possibly compete for resources. But in fact, the attack did not cripple their Naval Forces, it only angered them and led to war.
In the late 1800's and earlier 1900's, during the spread of imperialism, the US set up bases in the Philippines, and eventually tried to "help" them, leading to a revolution and a war. The Americans won, and gained control of the Philippines, beginning their presences in the Pacific Ocean.
The next cause was the Japanese's need for imperialism because of lack of resources. Japan doesn't have a large amount of resources, therefore they must expand in order to increase their industrialization. The US was a limiting factor in this, because they were competing for resources, so Japan decided they needed to remove their presences from the Pacific area.
This leads us to the final reason, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States primary naval base in the Pacific Ocean. The Japan thought if they attacked this naval base they could cripple their Navy Forces, and there was no way they could possibly compete for resources. But in fact, the attack did not cripple their Naval Forces, it only angered them and led to war.
Citations: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/The_USS_Arizona_(BB-39)_burning_after_the_Japanese_attack_on_Pearl_Harbor_-_NARA_195617_-_Edit.jpg