Humans are in the most peaceful period in history?

Steven Pinker, one of "100 famous intellectuals of the world", author of The Better Angel of Our Nature that humans could live in the most peaceful era in history.
Despite the daily news, events related to crime, violence and death is covered all over the surface and the media, Steven Pinker, professor of psychology at the University of Harvard, one "100 famous intellectuals in the world" by Time magazine poll that human beings are still living in the most peaceful period in history.
In The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined, has just published its 2011, Professor Steven Pinker explains the transition of different in human history has led to less violent society more energy.
Harvard professor Steven Pinker. Photo: news.harvard.edu.

In particular, one of the conversion process is the most important process of social transformation from hunting and gathering to the state society - a process which Professor Pinker is "the process of pacification."
Harvard professor further explained that this transition resulted in a significant reduction of violence and reduce the most powerful in human history. The reason is, the introduction of state roles and functions as an arbitrator to "arbitration" in the conflict, violence and bring "justice" for individuals in society.
Meanwhile, the "domestication process", said Professor Pinker, describing the decline of violence in Europe during the Middle Ages. And then: "A modern Britain at risk of being murdered less than 50 times compared to his compatriots in the Middle Ages."
The Pinker argues his many critics have said that the lack of accurate and objective by Professor focuses too heavily on Western European history that neglect, ignore the trend of violence in the history of Asia, Africa or South America. This omission is said to help author of "hushed up" stories, the facts do not fit his argument.
Indeed, critics say, Professor Pinker does not necessarily have to find ways to justify and demonstrate downward trend of violence in human history, a way too smooth. Will be more reasonable if he argues that violence tends to follow a chart but bumpy decline significantly. "
To help readers understand more thorough theoretical reduction of violence, al Jazeera interview "father" of this theory, Professor Steven Pinker:
- Professor, whether things actually worse ago 5000?
Before the agricultural civilization and state formation, 5,000 years ago, people always live in fear of being attacked and hatred is a characteristic ingrained into the minds of each person, each communication. In this period, a tribal council or a person with deep connections to each other enemies would not hesitate to kill fellow human beings with poisoned arrows, captured the women of the enemy on his wife.
The analysis and forensic examination of the bones or the remains of people living in different periods help substantiate arguments about the decline of violence between people together in the development of society. Even within the same historical period, the rate of violence also tend to decrease over time. For example, in the era of people live in a state of anarchy, in the later period, tong period tribe, violence decreased over the period of hunter-gatherers.
- The transition from tribal life to the kingdom, and empire to the modern state relationship like with the decline of violence?
The monarch and the first emperor of a kingdom or an empire usually do not care much for the mental welfare of their citizens.
Instead, the feud and the takeover battle is mutual abutment of the mind leading monarchs.
After each war territory he struggles, the losers will be kept to become pawns in the battle experimental network or become permanent slaves to the victors.
However, the following modes of increasingly more concerned about the welfare of the people. That was a rule to help the king order, the State holds the power in their hands.
- Explain how a professor on genocide and mass murder in the 20th century, such as the Nazi era is based on the theory of the decline of their violence?
In fact, in another century, genocide and mass murder are not simple. Based on the balance of population, we can compare the increase or reduction of violence.
World War 2 is clearly a worst event in human history but it does not tend to prove the genocidal war on the rise. In contrast, mortality rates during the war followed a bumpy chart but suddenly decline since 1946.
For genocide or mass murder by a dictator who caused no clear evidence to show that dictators previous generation kill more people than dictators the next generation.
However, dictators the next generation are difficult to kill a person that he wants rather than dictators previous generations by the society is becoming more democratic. The world today achieved a lot more democratic than the period of tyranny, monarchy.
- The number of people killed by terrorism than the number of people killed by the killers, war and genocide like?
Without any comparison of the rate of killings between these crimes. The 9/11 terrorist attacks was the worst in history with 3,000 killed.
However, this figure is only a fraction of the number of people killed in the fierce war or in the worst genocide.
Other than the prospect of nuclear terrorism, terrorism "normal" fear generated by terrorist nature of it rather than by its consequences. Terrorism "common" indicates the tactics "stupid, stupid" - that 97% of terrorist plots fail and not achieve the objectives as planned.
- Iranian President Ahmadinejad had sent Israel a clear message that "Israel will wipe out the world map." It is considered as a threat to survival and may cause a bloody war. He said if the Iranians will be able to use nuclear weapons to attack Israel or not?
Nothing is certain that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would attack Israel with nuclear weapons. On the other hand, Israelis are not too little to worry about spare capacity is very low probability of this.
Declaration madness along with many other reactionary statement of Iranian President (eg explicit denial Holocaust Jewish Nazi is the cause of much real uncertainty. The statement destroy, wipe a member state of the United Nations is provocative actions. There is no any country member of the UN wiped out by violence.
- The relationship between reduced violence concerns and increasing protection for poor children, children of ethnic minorities, women and gays is what?
The group most vulnerable in society such as children, women and gays increasingly received more attention and protection of human rights through revolution.
The human rights revolution helps protect them from other forms of racism, gender, and rape, domestic violence, assault and gay stigma, physical abuse and sex together the penalties are harsh, cruel, loss of other properties.
I believe that the evil of violence is a factor promoting humanitarian values ​​are increasingly interested in and pay more attention.
- In terms of psychology, there must be an innate tendency to violence and aggression? Or vice versa, is the nature of man is good?
Both are true and not true. People tend to foster a multitude of different motives may lead to violence. It is the revenge ideology, domination, greed and destruction ...
However, they also have a variety of other motor capable of inhibiting violence, including self-control themselves, empathy or desire for justice ... The rate of violence in society depends on the that the more dominant.
- Is the exchange, international trade is also a cause of reduced violence?
In general, an open society or a different calling for a flat world economies integrate with each other, depend on each other will reduce the likelihood of war, curb conflicts between nations , between man and man.
- If we all know that we live in a relatively peaceful era in human history, our common psychological impact will be like?
We can try to find and study the factors that can promote the reduction of violence, including factors such as global trade, democracy, cosmopolitanism, educational factors, an apparatus clean state, good or free speech. From the realization of these factors, we can promote and replicate them.