Penguinz0 Reacts to the Deadliest Man in History

You'd think the award for 'most people killed' would go to some unhinged historical tyrant, but it's actually this one dude named Thomas Midgley Jr. This guy wasn't a general or a dictator; he was just an engineer trying to solve car engine problems for General Motors. His big brain idea? Add lead to gasoline. It worked, but it also just so happened to poison the entire planet for decades, causing untold amounts of death and brain damage. It's the kind of catastrophic 'oopsie' that penguinz0 points out is almost impressive in its destructive scale. As if creating one planet-killer wasn't enough, Midgley then doubled down and invented chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs. This was the stuff in old refrigerators and aerosol cans that basically punched a hole in the ozone layer and tried to give the entire world a sunburn. The guy had the Midas touch, but instead of gold, everything he created just slowly murdered humanity. It's an unbelievable track record. You have to wonder if at some point his boss was like, 'Tom, maybe just… take a break from inventing for a while. Try knitting.' The craziest part of this whole saga is how Midgley's story ends. After getting polio, he built this elaborate system of ropes and pulleys to help him get out of bed, and he ended up getting tangled in his own invention and strangling himself. He was literally killed by his own bad idea, which is maybe the most fitting end in all of human history. As moistcr1tikal breaks it down, it's not a story about an evil man, but about the absolute disaster of unintended consequences. This might be the wildest history lesson you'll ever get.