DDT

DDT is a pesticide and a very good one which reduced the malaria problem by killing the mosquitoes which carry it. Banning it has been good for mozzies and deadly for people. This particular bit of interference has killed millions. It gets around 2 million per year, mainly children giving a total of some 50 million which is more than Adolf managed to do.

The damage was done by well meaning environmentalists who were ignorant. Has this message gotten out to the public? No, not even slightly. Do we all believe the soft, warm fuzzy image that greenies project? All too often.

This little essay is based on State Of Fear, a novel by Michael Crichton, an author who has a serious interest in ecology. See page 579 onward. He cites But Is It True? A Citizen's Guide to Environmental Health and Safety Issues by Aaron Wildavsky.

Another and gloomier view is at DDT. Another is at Doomed Planet