20 Mind-Blowing Facts About Joseph Stalin
18. His Most Famous Quote Was Probably Misattributed
Better known today as one of Marilyn Manson's more thoughtful lyrics, the quote (and indeed sentiment) "a single death is a tragedy, a million dead is a statistic" is largely attributed to Joseph Stalin. However, such a deep and thoughtful idea was one that largely flew in the face of Stalin's barbarism and several aspersions have been cast over its legitimacy since.
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Due to the general culture of simply-making-stuff-up-so-your-leader-looks-good though, and that it was initially reported by German writer Erich Maria Remarque (a pacifist who would almost certainly have never actually met Stalin) it's probably a safe bet that he never actually said it.