My professor whines about how the world "as violent as ever"

[Nakura Chambers]

Almost every class period my history professor complains about how the world is just as violent as it has always been and that there have been no improvements in global security in the past hundreds of years (if not longer).

How can a supposedly educated person such as himself believe that there have been no improvements in global security over the past several hundred years? We haven't had a war between developed nations in nearly 70 years. Not only that, but half of the world is united in the name of peace and democratic values (NATO, ANZUS and non-NATO allies). How can he argue that the world is more violent now than it was in 1914 or during Napoleonic Wars?

[Deleted]

Your Professor is an idiot and needs to get a refund for his History degree, the world is safer than it has ever been for most of the world.

[Jordaen]

Shouldn't you ask him that question? I doubt any of us know what's going on inside his head. Does he give you any examples or just vague statements? If it's vague, maybe he hasnt' really looked up the crime rates and all of the other quantitative data we have about violence going down in the last few decades.

[Independent voter]

Professors make crap up all the time, they're just trying to be entertaining so you don't fall asleep. And they want you to give them good end of class reviews.

[Gheld]

Depends upon how you define violence.

If you define violence as in direct organized military conflict between nations then yeah it's less violent.

If you define violence as back room wheeling and dealing that leads to the exploitation of nations through the armament of paramilitary groups in order to forcibly extract the spoils of war which are then laundered on the mass market and monetized in the form of consumer products that everybody in "peaceful nations" takes advantage of then I'd say the violence has largely been swept under the rug but is still as real as ever before.

[Nakura Chambers]

Shouldn't you ask him that question? I doubt any of us know what's going on inside his head. Does he give you any examples or just vague statements? If it's vague, maybe he hasnt' really looked up the crime rates and all of the other quantitative data we have about violence going down in the last few decades.

He gave examples like ISIS, the Vietnam War (it's a Vietnam War history class), the Iraq War and (in regards to humans being violent) the Ferguson riots.

[Wells]

Almost every class period my history professor complains about how the world is just as violent as it has always been and that there have been no improvements in global security in the past hundreds of years (if not longer).

How can a supposedly educated person such as himself believe that there have been no improvements in global security over the past several hundred years? We haven't had a war between developed nations in nearly 70 years. Not only that, but half of the world is united in the name of peace and democratic values (NATO, ANZUS and non-NATO allies). How can he argue that the world is more violent now than it was in 1914 or during Napoleonic Wars?

Did he then challenge God to smite him if he really exists and then got punched by a marine? That marines name? Albert Einstein.

[Lodreh]

...the Ferguson riots.

Is this even a thing? Unless the body count is at least in the double digits it doesn't deserve a mention.

[Reeve]

He gave examples like ISIS, the Vietnam War (it's a Vietnam War history class), the Iraq War and (in regards to humans being violent) the Ferguson riots.

If the world were as violent as it had ever been, there would have been nothing preventing the US in the Vietnam War from rolling over North Vietnam and slaughtering all the fighting age men in every village along the way.

[Durantye]

Almost every class period my history professor complains about how the world is just as violent as it has always been and that there have been no improvements in global security in the past hundreds of years (if not longer).

How can a supposedly educated person such as himself believe that there have been no improvements in global security over the past several hundred years? We haven't had a war between developed nations in nearly 70 years. Not only that, but half of the world is united in the name of peace and democratic values (NATO, ANZUS and non-NATO allies). How can he argue that the world is more violent now than it was in 1914 or during Napoleonic Wars?

That is odd because my Professor (World Civilization) said that we are currently in the most peaceful time to have ever existed in recorded human history.

[Gheld]

If the world were as violent as it had ever been, there would have been nothing preventing the US in the Vietnam War from rolling over North Vietnam and slaughtering all the fighting age men in every village along the way.

If the west were so ethical then our addiction to selfies and cell phones and electronics should be a boon that makes sub-saharan africa one of the wealthiest regions on the planet due to the abundance of wulframite ore.

[Forgettable]

Here's some data showing your professor is on crack:

http://ourworldindata.org/roser/pres...l#/title-slide

[Kalis]

That is odd because my Professor (World Civilization) said that we are currently in the most peaceful time to have ever existed in recorded human history.

It's not really that odd, your professor is probably real.

[Vizardlorde]

With guns and international laws wars have become less violent. Now most soldiers don't go cutting off heads for trophies and take the survivors as slaves. They also don't go on raping sprees or eradicating towns and villages completely.

[Durantye]

It's not really that odd, your professor is probably real.

That is what I thought for a moment too, "There is no way a professor would say something like that!" till literally moments later I found this thread.

[Deleted]

OPs story is BS inspired by another thread

[brimdog]

The world has changed, it has gotten smaller, yet Man's need to be bigger than himself hasn't, and so we still have the same problems, abstract-thought-big-picture-wise, that Human Beings have always had: Instinctual reaction > retrospective logic.

[Independent voter]

OPs story is BS inspired by another thread

That thought crossed my mind too.

[Vizardlorde]

Worst professors Ive had were brilliant in their subject but couldnt teach you how to open a door if their life depended on it, and senile old coots who may have been great half a century ago.

[ParanoiD84]

He should do some research about wars in the ancient and medieval era.