Fear and ignorance is a good general concept but I believe it's more about the application of those via Nationalism/Racism/Religious intolerance. Division of humankind. All of those can be implied. The biggest killer in American history is good old white-bred, nationalistic Americanism.

I think this song is about fear and ignorance, the other things comes as a consequence.

i don't know about the last comment... i think at this point in their lives the band wasn't as pissed off at specifically religion, but rather, the ignorance that is spawned from accepting things without thinking about them for yourself. i doubt this song is as about religion as the previous comment might suggest... however, i still am unsure what the biggest killer in american history is.

The meaning of this song is that, without ''god' shed[ing] his grace on thee,' the being will be killed and sent to 'hell' in the 'afterlife'. The song talks about having to, 'face your fear,' which means that all these people are clinging to the bible to save them from 'hell'. It also says that 'business institutions, universities... both are quite the circus when the killer wants his way'. This means that no matter how educated you are, god can say, 'well, he doesn't believe in me, he goes to hell'. The effects of the killing talked about in the song is not only felt by those who don't believe (killed in the afterlife), but those who kill their energy for life by reading a bible to save themselves in the afterlife. The belief of god kills everyone!

The biggest killer is about more than Edward teller or nuclear test in Nevada. Graffin is stating that the most dangerous human beings are world leaders, heads of institutions and universities such as Edward Teller.

The song is about the making of the atomic bomb. Edvard Teller was the inventor....

One line makes the meaning of the song almost blatantly clear. 'I think of Edward Teller and his moribund reprise, then I look to Nevada and I can't believe my eyes.' Edward Teller was the father of the H-bomb. He was one of the driving forces behind the project. Once the Los Alamos scientists saw the devastating effects of the first bomb dropped on Japan, they were disgusted and didn't want nuclear power to be used as a weapon. Edward Teller on the other hand embraced the idea of using such a deadly force as a weapon. He also betrayed Oppenheimer by testifying against him at the Oppenheimer security hearings. 'I look to Nevada and I can't believe my eyes' hints at all of the nuclear testing done there. Hundreds of atom bombs were tested in the state of Nevada. 795 at last count. To me the song is talking about the US using nuclear weapons as the biggest killer in American history.

The meaning I got from this song jumped out at me right away and I'm surprised no one seemed to pick up on the same thing...knowledge or rather a lack there of. Ignorance, the whole idea that what we don't know can't hurt us if completely false. It's what we don't know and choose to remain unaware of because we fear the truth that will most certainly kill us.

My only clue to this song's meaning comes from the unwritten intro, 'k-k-k-kill'. If you then read the lyrics, you could come to the conclusion that I did, that the 'Biggest Killer in American History' is racism. The song speaks of how racism can, ironically, not be singled out by means of background, faith, etc. The line about 'business institutions and universities' could easily imply how many business succumbed to the wishes of the Ku Klux Klan in the era before the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's. Racism can infect anyone, if the environment suits it, and this song seems to reflect that.

To be honest I have no idea about this song and was wondering if anyone could shed any light. I guess it could be religion or even the president ('And god shed his grace on thee') But other than that I'm lost.