OK, so it's just another survey with possible bias and what-not. But here is the latest "Global Peace Index" rankings for 2007. Interestingly, the top most peaceful countries in the world are: Norway, New Zealand, Denmark, Ireland, Japan, Finland, Sweden, Canada, Portugal & Austria. The least being: Iraq, Sudan, Israel, Russia & Nigeria. Not too surprising, but I do find it fascinating how the Northern European countries like Norway, Finland, Sweden & Denmark always seem to rank quite high in these kinds of surveys. The E.U. is overwhelmingly peaceful.

Some other ranks:
25. Australia
49. United Kingdom
96. USA

And a map:
http://pages.quicksilver.net.nz/mfn-0056/images/map-GPI-RYB.gif

And a link:
http://www.visionofhumanity.com/rankings/

at first glance i thought you were implying that u.s. was third peacful. i was a bit worried for a moment.

Iraq is dead last.  I don't think that will surprise anyone lol

Iraq is dead last. 

You can say that again!

Of course, Norway is most peaceful...and probably most boring!  The kids have to manufacture their own hatred--Satanic/National Socialist Black Metal bands!

I don't think the map tells the whole truth.  That's the problem with conclusions based on statistics.

For instance--

Israel ranks far below El Salvador, but where would you rather spend a vacation?  Jerusalem or San Salvador?

(Say San Salvador and I'll say you're bonkers! Even the Peace Corps won't go there!)
:D

I myself find the "placement" with a boulder of salt.  Some of the things they take in consideration really make me wonder what kinds of drugs they are on.  Here are some specific results for the US:

(The lower the number the better)

UN Deployments 2006-07 (percentage of total forces)  5
Military capability/sophistication                                    5
Ease of access to weapons of minor destruction            3

(in other words, we loose major points because of the 2nd ammendment, because we participate in UN Peacekeeping operations, and because we have a sophisticated military)

Yet interestingly enough, here are some other stats:

Level of violent crime                                                1
Political instability                                                      1
Aggregate number of heavy weapons per 100,000 people      1

(In other words, we are politically stable, we are low when it comes to violent crime, and we do not have a lot of machine guns and rocket launchers on the street.)

Overall, I wonder how and why they are ranking things the way they do.  In a lot of the areas listed, the US ranks much better then Cuba.  Yet they come out at 59 while we are 96.

http://www.visionofhumanity.com/rankings/show_country/113

Of course, Norway is most peaceful...and probably most boring!  The kids have to manufacture their own hatred--Satanic/National Socialist Black Metal bands!


You've just gone up in my opinion. Most people are unaware of the connotations that go with Black Metal.. which as we all know IST KRIEG!!!

It's not surprise that Northern Europe is the most peaceful, everyone is just like everyone else and there is harmony.. I wont go any further.  ;D

Iraq is dead last.  I don't think that will surprise anyone lol
surprised sudan didn't beat it.

I myself find the "placement" with a boulder of salt.  Some of the things they take in consideration really make me wonder what kinds of drugs they are on.  Here are some specific results for the US:

(The lower the number the better)

UN Deployments 2006-07 (percentage of total forces)   5
Military capability/sophistication                                    5
Ease of access to weapons of minor destruction            3

(in other words, we loose major points because of the 2nd ammendment, because we participate in UN Peacekeeping operations, and because we have a sophisticated military)

Yet interestingly enough, here are some other stats:

Level of violent crime                                                 1
Political instability                                                       1
Aggregate number of heavy weapons per 100,000 people      1

(In other words, we are politically stable, we are low when it comes to violent crime, and we do not have a lot of machine guns and rocket launchers on the street.)

Overall, I wonder how and why they are ranking things the way they do.  In a lot of the areas listed, the US ranks much better then Cuba.  Yet they come out at 59 while we are 96.

http://www.visionofhumanity.com/rankings/show_country/113
the first index was "trust of other citizens", a qualitative indicator in which the US, incredibly, merits a 2. i mean, the anti-immigration folks have been having conniptions trying to build a moat around the contiguous united states!  ;D i'd say a three at least for that, since it's "qualitative."

incarceration rate: 5. we knew that.

i will admit that making UN deployments an aggravating factor doesn't quite smell right. military development and sophistication seems fair though. huge, bloated military = peaceful nation? not really.

i will admit that making UN deployments an aggravating factor doesn't quite smell right. military development and sophistication seems fair though. huge, bloated military = peaceful nation? not really.


You are actually reading that wrong.  It is not reguarding the size of the military, but it's sophistication.

When you look at "Number of armed services personnel per 100,000", we rank 1 and Cuba ranks 2 (remember, lower is better).

And when you look lower at the number of Law Enforcement,we rank better then most of the world.  Here are some peeks at the very last rank given:

US:
Number of paramilitary personnel per 100,000 people    0

Cuba:
Number of paramilitary personnel per 100,000 people    240

So by percentage, Cuba has 240% more people carrying weapons for the Government then the US does.  "Paramilitary" covers not the military, but FBI, Secret Service, BATF, and all other law enforcement agencies.  I guess that is why Cuba is often considered to be a "Police State".

So we're ranked 20th... Not bad, considering. Slightly better than Australia, but way behind New Zealand.

I notice it isn't a complete list though... It does list Serbia, but I think that (still) includes Montenegro as well (which has gained independence recently), and Eastern Timor seems to missing too. I wonder why... ::)

You are actually reading that wrong.  It is not reguarding the size of the military, but it's sophistication.

When you look at "Number of armed services personnel per 100,000", we rank 1 and Cuba ranks 2 (remember, lower is better).

And when you look lower at the number of Law Enforcement,we rank better then most of the world.  Here are some peeks at the very last rank given:

US:
Number of paramilitary personnel per 100,000 people    0

Cuba:
Number of paramilitary personnel per 100,000 people    240

So by percentage, Cuba has 240% more people carrying weapons for the Government then the US does.  "Paramilitary" covers not the military, but FBI, Secret Service, BATF, and all other law enforcement agencies.  I guess that is why Cuba is often considered to be a "Police State".
and yet america has more of its people in prison?

actually, you're reading ME wrong. military "capability" has nothing to do with its size? that seems quite preeminently clear to me, that a larger military is likely to be much more capable than a small one. anyway, "bloated" can be taken in a lot of different ways. one air force could have more planes than another, but if the "smaller" air force's planes are all ridiculously overengineered aircraft like the F-22 (which costs, what, 100 billion dollars apiece?), then the ostensibly smaller air force is in fact the more "bloated" one.

i mean in terms of people under arms, this is in fact a very small military, yes? we couldn't even send in enough troops to iraq to pacify it. could only spare 150,000, thereabouts. doesn't stop our military from having a larger budget than, i believe it's now every other military in the world combined? most of that isn't going into size per se, but into what certain misguided souls would call "sophistication." doesn't connote "bloat" any less.

You've just gone up in my opinion. Most people are unaware of the connotations that go with Black Metal.. which as we all know IST KRIEG!!!

It's not surprise that Northern Europe is the most peaceful, everyone is just like everyone else and there is harmony.. I wont go any further.  ;D


It's a fair point.  My liberal friends always compare the U.S. negatively with Scandinavia.  Well,when you've got racially homogeneous countries with populations under ten or fifteen million, it's much easier to implement socialist institutions such as universal healthcare, free university, and high quality cooperative housing programs. Mind you, I don't use "socialist" in a negative way here, and I think these are services the U.S. should strive for.  You can agree or disagree.  My point is comparing the U.S. to Norway is apples and oranges.  It's unreasonable and unfair. 

The Black Metal phenomenon with the murders and church-burnings is horrifying, but largely anomolous.  Most Black Metal bands don't want to hurt anybody, and neo-nazis are in the minority.  The Viking stuff is just silly!

http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/10/viking.gif

It's a fair point.  My liberal friends always compare the U.S. negatively with Scandinavia.  Well,when you've got racially homogeneous countries with populations under ten or fifteen million, it's much easier to implement socialist institutions such as universal healthcare, free university, and high quality cooperative housing programs. Mind you, I don't use "socialist" in a negative way here, and I think these are services the U.S. should strive for.  You can agree or disagree.  My point is comparing the U.S. to Norway is apples and oranges.  It's unreasonable and unfair. 

The Black Metal phenomenon with the murders and church-burnings is horrifying, but largely anomolous.  Most Black Metal bands don't want to hurt anybody, and neo-nazis are in the minority.  The Viking stuff is just silly!

http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/10/viking.gif


I love church burnings!

.. and Euronymous deserved to die. But regardless.

I actually would be in favor of implementing a number of the social programs that are in place in Scandinavia, if I thought for a moment we could make them work in the U.S, but I doubt it.

(With the exception of Universal health-care, we need that by any means necessary.)

I don't know about the other places,but from my experience Portugal,who ranked 9th in this, is the most peaceful country i've lived,and yeah it's small (less than 10 million),but it's not "racially homogeneous " at all. They have a lot of immigration from every portuguese speaking country and lately a lot from eastern europe too, but we all seem to get along pretty well,there's a true sense of integration. It's not a rich country by any means but for me it's been lovely ever since i moved here,then again i come from Brazil :o The thing i love the most is how safe Lisbon is,we can wander the streets at night without worrying about getting mugged,this is the only place i've been where i could do that,and everyone is pretty laid back and fun,so i'm really happy for them for ranking so high,my friends here are all proud :)

It's a shame i can't say that about home though,i'm surprised that Brazil is ranked higher than the US, when every major city there is a war zone now,there's actually an unspoken curfew that everyone respects,i was talking to my sister yesterday and she was telling me that she hasn't gone out of the house after 10pm in more than 3 months,they're all becoming prisoners of this damn gangs,and that's exactly what they want. I don't know when or if it will ever change,and everyday my heart is on my sleeve 'cause i worry so much about my friends and family who have to live like this...

I don't know about the other places,but from my experience Portugal,who ranked 9th in this, is the most peaceful country i've lived,and yeah it's small (less than 10 million),but it's not "racially homogeneous " at all. They have a lot of immigration from every portuguese speaking country and lately a lot from eastern europe too, but we all seem to get along pretty well,there's a true sense of integration. It's not a rich country by any means but for me it's been lovely ever since i moved here,then again i come from Brazil :o The thing i love the most is how safe Lisbon is,we can wander the streets at night without worrying about getting mugged,this is the only place i've been where i could do that,and everyone is pretty laid back and fun,so i'm really happy for them for ranking so high,my friends here are all proud :)

It's a shame i can't say that about home though,i'm surprised that Brazil is ranked higher than the US, when every major city there is a war zone now,there's actually an unspoken curfew that everyone respects,i was talking to my sister yesterday and she was telling me that she hasn't gone out of the house after 10pm in more than 3 months,they're all becoming prisoners of this damn gangs,and that's exactly what they want. I don't know when or if it will ever change,and everyday my heart is on my sleeve 'cause i worry so much about my friends and family who have to live like this...


Isabel, I must make a point.. I can't believe I've never said it before.

Your command of the English language is far better than mine and It's my mother tongue.  :-[

Isabel, I must make a point.. I can't believe I've never said it before.

Your command of the English language is far better than mine and It's my mother tongue.  :-[


Aww,thank you! You probably don't have my thick accent though ;D

Aww,thank you! You probably don't have my thick accent though ;D


Actually...

My Bizao-world -  London-Western Drawl/Fast Talk pretty much confuses everybody.

I think I get asked "Can you repeat that?" more than anybody else in this hemisphere.

A conversation with me goes from exceptionally fast speech where I'll use all manner of bizare slang that only I seem to understand... then when people complain... I have to sloooooooww it down.. and out comes the drawl, but it's far higher pitched, I can't help that, years of "Owight mate, ow'a'ya? Giz a tenner so's I cun gaw te the chippy n tha." has left me unable to go an octave lower.  ;D

Actually...

My Bizao-world -  London-Western Drawl/Fast Talk pretty much confuses everybody.

I think I get asked "Can you repeat that?" more than anybody else in this hemisphere.

A conversation with me goes from exceptionally fast speech where I'll use all manner of bizare slang that only I seem to understand... then when people complain... I have to sloooooooww it down.. and out comes the drawl, but it's far higher pitched, I can't help that, years of "Owight mate, ow'a'ya? Giz a tenner so's I cun gaw te the chippy n tha." has left me unable to go an octave lower.  ;D


I have an accent.  I didn't realize it until I was trying to talk to a bloke in a pool hall in Notting Hill.  He interrupted in his Cockney manner,
"You got a fackin' strong accent, mate!  You're gonna hafta slow way down!"

I don't know about the other places,but from my experience Portugal,who ranked 9th in this, is the most peaceful country i've lived,and yeah it's small (less than 10 million),but it's not "racially homogeneous " at all. They have a lot of immigration from every portuguese speaking country and lately a lot from eastern europe too, but we all seem to get along pretty well,there's a true sense of integration. It's not a rich country by any means but for me it's been lovely ever since i moved here,then again i come from Brazil :o The thing i love the most is how safe Lisbon is,we can wander the streets at night without worrying about getting mugged,this is the only place i've been where i could do that,and everyone is pretty laid back and fun,so i'm really happy for them for ranking so high,my friends here are all proud :)

It's a shame i can't say that about home though,i'm surprised that Brazil is ranked higher than the US, when every major city there is a war zone now,there's actually an unspoken curfew that everyone respects,i was talking to my sister yesterday and she was telling me that she hasn't gone out of the house after 10pm in more than 3 months,they're all becoming prisoners of this damn gangs,and that's exactly what they want. I don't know when or if it will ever change,and everyday my heart is on my sleeve 'cause i worry so much about my friends and family who have to live like this...

I've heard great things about Portugal.  Never been, but from what I've heard, I wouldn't mind living there.

I can't believe this country is only slightly ahead of freaking Iran, I don't know if I totally buy this.  :-\\

Actually...

My Bizao-world -  London-Western Drawl/Fast Talk pretty much confuses everybody.

I think I get asked "Can you repeat that?" more than anybody else in this hemisphere.

A conversation with me goes from exceptionally fast speech where I'll use all manner of bizare slang that only I seem to understand... then when people complain... I have to sloooooooww it down.. and out comes the drawl, but it's far higher pitched, I can't help that, years of "Owight mate, ow'a'ya? Giz a tenner so's I cun gaw te the chippy n tha." has left me unable to go an octave lower.  ;D


Yes,but do you mix the languages too? I do that a lot,i have to remind myself all the time of where i am and who i'm talking to...Oh and my dreams,my dreams are babelish :o


I've heard great things about Portugal.  Never been, but from what I've heard, I wouldn't mind living there.


You probably would like it, and you know what's funny? they actually LOVE americans here,well...except Bush ;)

Yes,but do you mix the languages too? I do that a lot,i have to remind myself all the time of where i am and who i'm talking to...Oh and my dreams,my dreams are babelish :o

You probably would like it, and you know what's funny? they actually LOVE americans here,well...except Bush ;)


Oh yeah, I use words over here in the U.S that nobody understands.. and I pronounce them so people think I'm talking about something different.

Like if I were to catch the 'Bas'.. they'd think I was going to go fishing.  ;)

I can't believe this country is only slightly ahead of freaking Iran, I don't know if I totally buy this.  :-\\

Well give us a chance!  We're tryin'!  Iran sentences juveniles to death, we sentence juveniles to death.  Now, what we need to do is execute 'em while they're still juveniles.  See, there's lots of little things we could do to help our ranking!
:-\\

Go Canada! But the only reason we aren't number one is because we're playing such a huge role in Afghanistan... which is anything but peaceful.

Canada is a peace-loving nation, which I guess is a privilege of being
A. in North America, and
B. The neighbour and close ally of the world's most awesome military power.

But in any case... go Canada!

http://www.canadianmoose.com/images(temporary)/CanadaDay.jpg

I just can agree with the people critizise the Rank of the US. If it comes to Most or Least Peaceful Countries in the World it should be ranked after safetiness inside of the country.
That s what interests me(regarding violent crimes, gangs,....) not including the political activity and military spending, imprisonment. Sure US has  lot of problems and a lot of crime but is not closely as bad as many other countries. Brazil,ElSalvador,Cuba already mentioned. South Africa I have been is the same like Brazil the violent crime rate is several times worse as the one in the US. Although South Africa is ranked behind USA after the safetiness of violence inside the country the difference of the score and ranks must be higher.

England has a higher violent crime(accept for murder and rape) and property crime rate as USA. If you take peace inside countries my country Austria isn´t as peaceful either anymore since we have open borders,burglaries occur everyday and people state its like a cancer and post there sorrows about it that gangs from the other countries come in and burglar go home ,come again. Like said comparing US with Scandinavia is unfair. The typical example again American people realize there problem of crime and in European like at this survey again the "so good" Europe people flush it down pretending there is nothing like that here which is totally pullsheesh. I want to have a list surveying the peace inside the country through normal violent crimes not prison poulation per capita, military spenidng,politics.

Heard already such comments as US has the highest prison population in the world worse as the ones in the apartheid in South Africa. Cool in South Africa people are sitting in there private prisons at home surrounded with an electrical fence unlike in America. Same situation like in Brazil 90 % of the people don´t want to walk out after dark are even scared at daytime while Most Americans feel comfortable walking out at night. There is a list of country per homicide rate. Would be interesting if there is also a list of country by robbery,rape,assault,attempt murder rate.

Um...  Bhutan really shouldn't be #19.  Whoever made that call apparently doesn't know about the tension between them and China.