[envenonearo]

We had Steve Pinker as recommended reading in a Landmark Course, and I just read an excellent article about him in Scientific American regarding his views on the history of violence in the world:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...human-violence

The short version: contrary to the views of most people, we live in a time when the incidence of human violence is at its lowest ebb in history. It's an excellent antidote to hell-in-a-handbasket style pessimism about humanity that I sometimes find myself falling into. Anyone else reading Pinker?

[lierro]

I do, I'm a huge fan of his work and the work of others like him - rather than starting with an optimistic or pessimistic view of the world, they look at the evidence, and work from there. While we're always biased by our perceptions and sources of knowledge, it gets us closer to really understanding the breakthroughs that human beings have achieved. One of the biggest is creating peaceful, wealthy, and flourishing societies.