Stalin Trick

We encounter the argument that atheists kill more people than religious people, and the argument centers on one person: Stalin.

Stalin Killed Lots of People

one single atheist like Stalin, and they’ll be worth more slaughtered deaths than all of religious conflicts COMBINED.

You are right, Stalin in the modern world with modern weapons and modern populations did kill a lot of people. Stalin was certainly an evil guy, there is no denying that. He was a power hungry megalomaniac at the head of an authoritarian system with no controls.

That is one guy, or maybe three if you include Pol Pot and Mao. Three people do not represent the broad reach of atheism.

All three of these were in the 20th century when the population was historically much higher than in all history before that. The inquisition could not possibly have killed as many because there simply we not as many people available for killing at the time.

Percentage of Population

If you consider PERCENTAGE of population, then religious wars by religious leaders have killed a far higher number of the available population.

Many Separate Religious Murders

While wars are evil, nothing compares to the religious zealots who burned people at the stake for nothing other than having the wrong THOUGHTS. This terror campaign went on for thousands of years. This was thousands of evil people, all driven by the same need to prove themselves right, or kill whoever disagreed.

Certainly, in terms of NUMBERS of evil people, religion wins there.