We humans hatch up some miraculous things—spaceships, pocket computers, pizza-on-a-bagel...
Sometimes we can't tell what trajectory a creation will take...so redditor u/idc_aboutusernames took it to the internet and asked: "What invention has done more harm than good?"
The answers came in swift and sure, and yeah...we might have been better off if these things stayed on the drawing board. Read on for the top picks!
1. "Coffee pods. Even the creator deeply regrets his invention and the environmental impact it has had."
2. "The 24-hour news cycle."
3. "Credit card scores. 'Hi yes, can I purchase car?' 'Do you have credit? 'Uh...no, I've been using cash to buy things.' 'Then sorry, no. Must have credit.' 'OK, can I apply for some credit then?' 'Sorry, we can't give you credit because you have no history of credit.'"
4. "Reality TV."
5. "Cigarettes. Those things ruined my life. I don’t smoke them anymore and have had to resort to other things. Peer pressure and wanting to fit in is an asshole."
6. "Data mining and ad delivery services disguised as social media."
— u/sev1nk
7. "Social networking."
8. "Lobotomy. Worst Nobel Prize winner ever."
9. "Slot machines. Once you get a taste of winning some money back, it gets eaten up in no time. You might think you can beat the system, but that's how they suck you in and take you for all you are worth. These things are rigged to pay out when a lot of money has been fed into them, so you have to be extremely lucky to get the big jackpot."
10. "Leaded gasoline."
"Leaded fuel, CFC...um, basically anything Thomas Midgley was involved with."
11. "Those plastic containers that are like crimp plastic stitch-welded around the entire edge, and it’s super-thick plastic that will slice your shit open."
12. "High-fructose corn syrup."
13. "Polygraph test. Even its inventor, John Larson, regrets his invention upon realizing how law enforcement would exploit the average citizen with it."
14. "Popcorn ceiling."
15. "Rigged claw machines. Like, seriously, fuck you — I just want my Squidward plush."
16. "Those low-flow toilets that result in you wasting more water because you have to flush it multiple times to get it to take a log down. Best solution I’ve seen is a toilet with two buttons, one for a half flush, and one for a full flush."
17. "The two-party political system."
18. "Individually packaged foods and snacks. I work at a grocery store, and it's abhorrent to me how much crap there is and how well it sells. I mean, Christ, yesterday I stocked "Nutella to go" packs that are...Nutella with pretzel sticks. They're tiny and come in small plastic tubs. Or those large bags of Reese's cups that come individually wrapped, or these ridiculous 1-ounce bags of freeze-dried fruit that we sell, which are absurdly popular, especially for how relatively expensive they are at $3 a bag. I get that plastic itself isn't bad, but this is egregious to me, especially with how much my generation (I'm 34) has had overuse of landfills drilled into our skulls."
19. "Soft-close toilet seats. Either all toilets should have them or none should. The current roulette is too stressful."
20. "The 'War on Drugs.'"
21. "Pop-up ads. Think of all the malware and viruses that people have fallen victim to because of pop-up ads, plus they are just annoying. Even the inventor of them apologized for creating them."
Is there an unfortunate innovation that didn't make the list? Let us know in the comments!
And dive into the whole thread here.
Note: Some answers have been edited for length/clarity.