this post was submitted on 29 Sep 2023
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What makes you say that? As a random example, leaded gasoline existed for 50 years longer than it should have. We've known lead was toxic since the Roman empire, and the only reason it was invented was to increase profits.
Romans died from lead in the aqueducts by the tens of thousands in Pompeii so saying they "knew" is misrepresentative to say the least. They didn't know why. Do you really need hyperbole to make your point?
Before modern germ theory, we thought nightshade killed us because it unbalanced our humors. The why isn't important, it's the understanding of toxicity.
Pretty much the whole world used leaded gasoline and capitalist countries were the first to phase it out. US phased it out relatively early compared to others, Japan was afaik the first to outright ban it in 86. My ex-eastern bloc country only fully banned it in 2002.
I recall a significant event that happened to the Eastern bloc not long after countries started banning leaded gas, could it be that the collapse of an entire political system prevented those countries from handling that?
What does the usage have to do with it? It was invented strictly for profit, and as such, leaded gas was the only thing being manufactured. Cars had to be specifically tuned to use it.