Who Is Responsible For Killing The Most People In Human History?

[Hymie]

Russia’s Stalin, Germany’s Hitler, Cambodia’s Pol Pot, Mongol’s Genghis Khan, China’s Mao Zedong or someone else?

 

 

Even if you attribute all those who died as a direct result of the Second World War (around 60 million) to Adolf Hitler (which most historians don’t) – this guy beats him hands-down.

 

His total killed to date is estimated by some at around 100 million, with an estimated 500,000 to 900,000 being added to that tally, yearly - you’ve probably never heard of him, but his name is Thomas Midgley Jr.

 

[the youtube video covering his life (and contemporaries) is around 25 minutes long, so not suitable for many who have a short attention span]

 

[ToraToraTora]

Perlease!

[ToraToraTora]

makes a change from brexit I suppose!

[ichkeria]

One of the most harmful inventors ever?

I'll say: according to wikipedia: "in 1944, he was found strangled to death by a device he devised to allow him to get out of bed unassisted"

On a more serious note, add King Leopold of Belgium to the list of also-rans: estimated to have been responsible for the deaths of 3 million Africans in the Congo.

[barry1010]

100m people across the world died prematurely due to tobacco.

https://ourworldindata.org/smoking#:~:text=death%20%7C%20CC%20BY-,Smoking%20led%20to%20about%20100%20million%20premature%20deaths%20in%20the,them%20in%20today's%20rich%20countries

[davebro3]

Chemists etc. around the world are always working on similar projects to each other - if not him then someone else....

[Old_Geezer]

Knew about him. But it wasn't deliberate in his case, simply unfortunate that side effects weren't anticipated.

[barry1010]

He did understand that lead is a killer and played down the lead in his invention 

[douglas9401]

Mother Nature, obvs.

[johnk]

Flu