How overdosing of Bayer’s wonder product probably aggravated major historical events of the early 20th century.
October 17, 2026
With Europe’s bizarre “leaders” apparently determined to have another military showdown with Russia, despite those of 1812, 1918, and 1941 going horribly wrong, I have returned to an old graduate school hobby—that is, reading the history of Russia.
An especially fascinating and tragic period was the reign of Tsar Nicholas II from 1894-1917.
In my estimation, Nicholas was one of the most polite, civilized, and decent rulers in the history of Europe. Often forgotten is that he was nominated for the Nobel Prize for his Hague Convention proposals in 1899:
Aspirin, or acetylsalicylic acid, was introduced commercially by the German pharmaceutical company Bayer in 1899. It rapidly became one of the most successful medicines in the world.
Before aspirin, physicians commonly prescribed salicylates derived from willow bark to relieve fever, pain, and inflammation. Aspirin offered a relatively convenient, standardized pharmaceutical preparation. By the beginning of the twentieth century, it was widely regarded as a modern medical breakthrough, and historical records indicate that many doctors badly overprescribed it.......