POLITICS

[SchnidlersLeest]

In Steve Pinker's book "The Better Angels of Our Nature" he argues that it is the creation of governments which has been largely responsible for the extreme and persistent decline in violence our species has witnessed throughout the entire span of our history. When government has the monopoly on violence (criminal punishment, war, etc.) it removes the power to commit violence from the hands of individuals. This has - evidently - created a situation which has reduced the prevalence of violence from every angle you care to look at it, and continues to do so as generations pass by.

Whether or not one agrees with Steve is another matter, of course!

Or perhaps it was the invention of nuclear weapons that made dictators less interested in starting wars because THEY might get vaporized. :p

...removed the power to commit violence from the hands of the individuals.

Show me what the government is without showing me individuals.

I would say the real reason for a psychological decline in the inclination for violence would be the accidental event of parents using less violence on children due to the standards of living having increased.