Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures
man speaking in front of crowd

By now it's common knowledge that history is written by the winners.

But it's also written by the swooners, the myth-makers and exaggerators, the ones who turn a blind eye to the ugly parts of the bio.


Indeed, the “winners" have some selective imaginations.

The great heroes, for all the historically influential deeds, were hardly. Even the saints weren't.

u/HotfoxK asked, "Who is the most overrated figure in history?"

Hype Tomb

King Tut

Really wasn't all that of an important pharaoh and is only well known because a dude named Howard Carter found his tomb and showed his treasure around the world

u/benx101

Dial Down the Penis Talk, Man

Sigmund Freud

His impact on psychology is largely overstated and most if not all of his research and claims are not recognized by modern psychology.

A good equivalent would be comparing him to astrology. Fun to read and think about, but don't take it too seriously.

u/rdg-lee

Sounds Like Grad School

Thomas Edison

Guy was the absolute biggest douche and a good portion of his patents were stolen from his apprentices and students

u/Jackforreall

Frequently Disremembered Racism

FDR

First he interred Asian Americans, actual citizens. We complain about Trump and his detention centers, but they legally aren't allowed to be here. Not saying it is right, but you can't love FDR and complain about border camps.

He refused to accept Jews who he knew would be killed.

He helped create red lining that has caused most, if not all, of the systemic racism in housing.

u/h0sti1e17

Panic Move, Woodrow

Woodrow Wilson

He was a racist and a sexist, and was pretty incompetent with the whole WW1 treaty, where he basically got walked all over by Congress and the others in the Big 4.

u/GamerWrestlerSoccer

Hell of a Set of Jowls, Though

Winston Churchill

The guy had a couple successful years, even that's arguable. The rest was steeped in failure, bloodshed and ash.

u/greengiantsbaby

Not Exactly a Healer

Mother Teresa

She was a sadist who thought poor people were better off suffering because their was purity in their suffering or other such bullocks (making her status as a kindhearted person incredibly ironic).

u/Dash_Harber

Peace and Independence, For Some

Gandhi

He was a racist (he wrote letters to Hitler and they began with "Dear friend"), he forced his lady companions to have enemas daily.

u/TechnicalCase

One Fish, Two -- Wait, what?

Dr Seuss. He only started writing children's books because his porn didn't sell. He based his Grinch character on himself. Cheated on his wife while she was ill with cancer, she committed suicide over it, writing in her note to him that "I cannot conceive of life without you". He later married the mistress.

lovelyb1ch66

The Less Than Wonderful World of Disney


Walt Disney was a racist, sexist, Nazi-sympathizing plagiarist who stiffed his workers.

Virtually everything positive that has ever been attributed to the man was shamelessly stolen from someone else... up to and including Mickey Mouse, who was the creation of an animator by the name of Ub Iwerks. The fellow whose empire now controls a sizeable chunk of the world's entertainment was essentially a media-focused reincarnation of Thomas Edison.

RamsesThePigeon

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Screenshot of Sanae Takaichi and Donald Trump
MS Now

Room Goes Silent After Trump Makes Super Tone-Deaf Joke To Japanese Prime Minister About Pearl Harbor In Shocking Video

The audience in the Oval Office went silent after President Donald Trump made a tone-deaf joke about the attack on Pearl Harbor to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi following a question about why he kept his attack on Iran a "surprise."

Trump was wrapping up a Q&A with reporters during a bilateral meeting with Takaichi when a Japanese journalist pressed him on why key allies—like Japan—were not notified ahead of the attack on Iran on February 28.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @torimosser's TikTok video
@torimosser/TikTok

Woman Says Stranger On TikTok Helped Save Her Life After Dangerous Medical Misdiagnosis

It is far too common for women's health concerns to be dismissed in the United States, especially when it comes to chronic conditions and pain levels.

Diagnosed with several chronic conditions, 23-year-old TikToker Tori Mosser reflected on years of painful stomach cramps and painful episodes when she finally was able to share that she'd received a diagnosis: Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome (CVS).

Keep ReadingShow less
Images from u/South-Basket-887's post in the 'Mildly Infuriating' subReddit
u/South-Basket-887/Reddit

Landlord Sparks Debate After Warning Tenant About Leaving Small Appliances Plugged In

Many of us have had to live in a rented space at some point in our lives and had to deal with landlords, some of whom can be very imposing and let the power of having tenants go to their heads.

But most of us probably didn't receive special notes from our landlords detailing the little observations they noticed about our lifestyles while doing a surprise inspection.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mark Zuckerberg
Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images

Meta Is Shutting Down Its VR 'Metaverse' After Spending An Obscene Amount Of Money Building It—And People Are Roasting Mark Zuckerberg Hard

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was roasted online after Meta announced they'll be shutting down Horizon Worlds, part of their virtual reality "Metaverse," this summer after spending close to $80 billion on the project.

The news comes five years after Zuckerberg declared the metaverse to be the future of Facebook, even renaming the company Meta to reflect that vision. In recent months, Meta cut roughly 10% of the workforce in its "metaverse" division and signaled a shift away from virtual reality for its flagship platform, Horizon Worlds, where users interact through avatars.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Rand Paul and Markwayne Mullin
C-SPAN3

Video Of GOP Senator Picking A Fight With A Witness Replayed During Contentious Senate Confirmation Hearing

Kentucky Republican Senator Rand Paul confronted his GOP colleague, Oklahoma's Markwayne Mullin, President Donald Trump's pick for Secretary of Homeland Security, over his "anger issues," even presenting video evidence.

Earlier this month, Trump announced he will replace Kristi Noem as Homeland Security Secretary with Mullin. Trump said Noem will instead take on the role of Special Envoy to the Shield of the Americas, a newly created organization intended to foster a right-wing alliance across South America.

Keep ReadingShow less