STEVEN PINKER IS
A COGNITIVE SCIENTIST AND HE HAS SOME GREAT NEWS FOR US.
YES, THE
WORLD IS FILLED WITH WARS, CRIME, AND OFTEN TIMES WHEN YOU
SEE THE NEWS YOU SEE A LOT OF BAD NEWS AROUND THE WORLD.
PART
OF THE REASON IS IF THERE IS GOOD NEWS, IT IS NOT SOMETHING
THAT IS EXTRAORDINARY.
TODAY A COP DID NOT SHOOT AND KILL AN
UNARMED PERSON, THAT IS NOT REALLY NEWS.
GOOD, THAT IS WHAT
THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO DO.
TODAY AWARD DID NOT BREAK OUT IN THE
NETHERLANDS.
FANTASTIC, NOT MUCH TO REPORT ON.
WHAT I WANT YOU TO
DO IS HAVE CONTEXT HERE SO YOU ARE NOT TOO BUMMED OUT ABOUT
WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE WORLD.
IN REALITY THINGS ARE GETTING
MUCH BETTER FROM A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.
PINKER EXPLAINS.
RIGHT NOW THERE IS A LOT OF DEMAGOGUES IN AMERICA SAYING
THIS IS THE WORST THREAT WE HAVE EVER SEEN.
IT IS NOT EVEN CLOSE
TO THE 1940S, BUT IT TURNS OUT IT'S NOT EVEN CLOSE TO THE 1960S
OR 90S.
HOW ABOUT THE INCREASE IN CRIME IN AMERICA?
THERE HAS
BEEN A SMALL UPTICK
SINCE 2015.
LET ME SHOW YOU A GRAPHIC THAT
SHOWS IT TO YOU IN A VISUAL SENSE.
HERE IS THE WORLDWIDE
BATTLE DEATHS PER 100,000 PEOPLE.
THIS IS ABOUT THE WARS
ALL ACROSS THE WORLD.
YOU SEE WHERE WE ARE, IN THE 2000'S AND
BEYOND, IT IS A TINY AMOUNT.
IT WAS MASSIVELY HIGHER IN TERMS OF
WORLDWIDE BATTLE DEATHS AND OF COURSE THE 1940S WHEN WE HAD THE
WORLD WARS WHICH WERE GIGANTIC.
MORE CONTEXT INTO THIS AS PINKER
EXPLAINS.
SO, CRIME IN THE US IS DOWN, WORLDWIDE WARS ARE DOWN.
HOW ABOUT TERRORISM?
THAT HAS TO BE WORSE.
LET'S NOT CALL PEARL
HARBOR TERRORISM.
PUT ALL THAT ASIDE.
OF COURSE TERRORISM IS
THE WORST IT HAS EVER BEEN, RIGHT?
WRONG.
SO, PINKER SAYS
YES, 2015 MUCH WORSE THAN THE YEARS PRIOR.
YOU HAVE SEEN ALL
THOSE ATTACKS IN EUROPE, ALL THOSE ATTACKS IN WESTERN EUROPE
AS WELL.
IT PALES IN COMPARISON TO THE TERRORIST ACTS BETWEEN 72
AND 92.
HE EXPLAINS IT
WAS
THE RED BRIGADES AND SO MANY OTHER
TERRORIST GROUPS.
NOW THOSE ARE LONG GONE AND PRESUMED TO BE
MINOR BECAUSE SOME OF THOSE GROUPS DON'T EXIST ANYMORE AND
OUR MEMORIES HAVE FADED ON THEM.
ALSO PARTLY BECAUSE A LOT OF THE
TERRORISM WITHIN EUROPE WITH EUROPEANS AT THE TIME.
IS HARDER
TO DEMONIZE THEM AS "THE OTHERS."
WHAT ABOUT HOMICIDES
BECAUSE OF TERRORISM?
IF YOU'RE GOING TO BE SCARED OF SOMETHING,
AND THE DEMAGOGUES WILL TELL YOU TO ALWAYS BE SCARED, WE SHOULD
ACTUALLY BE SCARED OF IS SOMEONE IN YOUR OWN COUNTRY TRYING TO
KILL YOU.
SO, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS GRAPH WE ARE BLOWING PEOPLE
OUT OF THE WATER.
DON'T ALL THOSE COUNTRIES THAT HAVE GUN
CONTROL
ñ AUSTRALIA HAS VERY STRINGENT GUN CONTROL.
WE ARE NUMBER ONE
IN THE WORLD FOR HOMICIDES BY FIREARMS.
YOUR CHANCE OF DYING
BY A FIREARM, WE ARE NUMBER ONE.
YOUR CHANCE OF DYING FROM A
HOMICIDE IS STILL SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN DYING FROM
TERRORISM.
NOW, I WANT TO GIVE YOU ONE MORE SET OF GOOD NEWS
HERE.
THIS COMES FROM A BLOG ON MEDIUM AND IT HAS FACTS ABOUT
HOW WE HAVE DEVELOPED SINCE 1820.
EVEN BIGGER TIME CONTEXT
AND PERSPECTIVE HERE.
THIS IS ALL GOOD NEWS.
POPULATION
LITERACY, BACK IN 1820 ONLY 20% OF THE COUNTRY WAS LITERATE.
WHAT IS TODAY?
80%.
THAT IS WONDERFUL.
HOW ABOUT POVERTY?
BACK IN 18 2894% OF THE PEOPLE ON THE PLANET LIVED IN POVERTY.
TODAY IT IS ONLY 10%.
THAT IS GREAT NEWS.
FINALLY, LIFE
EXPECTANCY.
BACK IN 1820 IT WAS ONLY 35 YEARS.
TODAY IT
IS 70
YEARS.
[VIDEO BUFFERING] CERTAINLY PEOPLE WILL WANT TO
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT BAD NEWS AND LEAD YOU IN THE WRONG
DIRECTION.
BUT REMEMBER THE REALITY AND THE CONTEXT, BECAUSE
THINGS ARE MUCH BETTER THAN THEY USED
TO BE.